AND  HUNTERS 


IDA  L.  FLEITMANN 


f  /  — 


/ 


TUFTS   UNIVERSITY   LIBRARIES 


3   9090   013   420   696 


Webster  F  ibrary  of  Veterinary  Medicine 

Cumminc  nary  Medicine  at 

Tufts 

200  V         ro  Road 

North  Grafton,  MA  01 536 


COMMENTS  ON 
HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 


- 


COMMENTS  ON 
HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 


BY 

LIDA  L.  FLEITMANN 


"  If  there  are  no  horses  in  Heaven  I  have  no  desire  to  enter." 

— Aristotle. 


NEW  YORK 
CHARLES  SCRIBNER'S  SONS 

1921 


Copyright,  1921,  by 
CHARLES  SCRIBNER'S  SONS 


Published  October,  1921 


PRINTED  AT 

THE    SCRIBNER   PRESS 

NEW  YORK,  U.  S.  A. 


TO 
JOHN    R.    TOWNSEND 

EX-M.    F.    H.    OF    THE    ORANGE    COUNTY,    THE    MIDDLEBURG,    THE 
PIEDMONT,    AND    THE    GLEN    ARDEN    HUNTS 

THE    KEENEST    OF    SPORTSMEN 

THE    MOST    FINISHED    OF    HORSEMEN 

THE    KINDEST    AND    BEST    OF    FRIENDS 

THIS    BOOK    IS    DEDICATED    AS    A    SMALL    TRIBUTE    OF    A    GREAT 

GRATITUDE    FOR    THE    INVALUABLE    HELP    AND 

ADVICE    HE    HAS   GIVEN    ME 


AUTHOR'S  APOLOGY 

"I  only  thought  to  make 

I  know  not  what;  nor  did  I  undertake 
Thereby  to  please  my  neighbor.     No;  not  I. 
I  did  it  mine  own  self  to  gratify." 

— John  Bunyan. 

So  many  countless  books  have  been  written  on  the 
subject  of  horses  that  in  adding  another  volume  to 
that  already  prodigious  list,  it  seems  as  if  an  apology, 
or  at  least  an  explanation,  were  due  my  readers. 

Confession  is  good  for  the  soul,  and  possibly  it  is  as 
well  to  admit,  first  as  last,  that  the  very  human  instinct 
"to  create,"  to  follow  Carlyle's  advice  when  he  said: 
"Produce,  Produce — Though  it  be  but  the  merest 
fraction  of  a  fragment — Produce  it" — is  very  largely 
responsible  for  this  book's  existence. 

That  is  not  all.  That  alone  would  scarcely  be  ample 
justification.  Added  to  this  the  authoress  also  hopes 
that  she  will,  perhaps,  be  able  to  fill  a  long-felt  need 
among  the  horse  lovers  of  America.  The  majority  of 
books  obtainable  on  the  subject  of  the  handling  of 
high-class  horses  are  English  works,  and  in  England 
the  conditions  of  hunting  and  showing  are  so  different, 
that  the  advice  given  can,  as  a  general  rule,  be  of  as- 
sistance only  to  the  expert  capable  of  applying  it  to 
fit  American  conditions. 

Those  thinking  to  find  in  this  volume  any  new  or 
startling  facts,  anything  original,  will  be  disappointed. 
In  horsemanship,  as  well  as  in  nearly  everything  else, 
"There  is  nothing  (or  at  least  very  little)  worth  think- 

vii 


viii  AUTHOR'S   APOLOGY 

ing  that  has  not  been  thought  before,  and  we  can  only 
try  to  think  it  again."  Who  was  it  that  said,  "To  say 
a  thing  that  everybody  else  has  said  before,  as  quietly 
as  if  nobody  had  ever  said  it — that  is  originality."  And 
I  fear  that  that  is  the  only  kind  of  originality  I  shall 
lay  claim  to. 

If  by  expressing  simply  and  clearly  facts  well  known 
to  experienced  horsemen,  I  can  inspire  the  novice — 
and  particularly  those  of  my  own  sex — to  attain  a 
greater  degree  of  proficiency;  if  I  can  create  in  natures, 
in  which  it  now  lies  dormant,  a  love  of  horse  and  hound, 
of  sport  and  of  God's  great  out-of-doors,  I  shall  feel 
myself  amply  repaid.  After  all,  as  Oliver  Wendell 
Holmes  tells  us,  it  is  true  that  "The  best  of  a  book  is 
not  in  the  thought  it  contains,  but  the  thought  it  sug- 
gests, just  as  the  charm  of  music  dwells  not  in  the  tones 
but  in  the  echoes  of  our  own  hearts." 

"Covert-Side  Farm," 

East  Norwich,  Long  Island, 
August,  1921. 


CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  PAGE 

I.     Buying 1 

II.     Conformation  and  Action 9 

III.  The  Model  Saddle  Horse 30 

IV.  The  Thoroughbred  Versus  the  Kentucky 

Saddle  Horse 41 

V.    The  Hunter 56 

VI.     The  Side-Saddle  Versus  the  Cross-Saddle  74 

VII.    Hints  on  Riding 85 

VIII.     Jumping 119 

IX.     HUxNTING 130 

X.    Hunting  Abroad 143 

XI.     Showing  Saddle  Horses 159 

XII.     Showing  Hunters  and  Jumpers  ....  184 

XIII.  Suggestions  to  Horse-Show  Managements  194 

XIV.  Showing  Abroad 200 

XV.    Saddles,  Bridles,  and  Other  Tack  .     .     .  204 

XVI.    Dress 230 

Reference  List  of  Appointments    .     .     .  258 


ILLUSTRATIONS 

Palmetto Frontispiece 

FACING  PAGE 

Golden  Duck 2 

John  R.  Townsend,  Esq.,  on  Greek  Dollar  ....  10 

Robert  L.  Gerry,  Esq.,  on  Hamsah 22 

F.  Vivian  Gooch,  Esq.,  on  Turquoise 32 

Ben  Dale 36 

William  H.  Moore's  hackney  mare,  Lady  Seaton    .      .  46 

Kentucky-bred  mare,  Bohemian  Actress 46 

Harvey  S.  Ladew's  thoroughbred  mare,  Leading  Lady .  46 

Model  middle-weight  hunter,  Sir  Linsin 58 

Model  light-weight  hunter,  Down  East 58 

Golden  Duck 70 

Imp.  Irish  Heather 86 

ThePiaffre 86 

Bronze  of  the  authoress  on  Cygnet 120 

John  R.  Townsend,  Esq.,  on  the  Martindale  Bismark, 

and  T.  Luis  Onativia  on  the  Parson 132 

Sceptre 160 

Palmetto — over  the  triple  bar 186 

xi 

( 


xii  ILLUSTRATIONS 


FACING    PAGE 


Confidence  making  the  world's  record  of  eight  feet 
one-half  inch  at  the  Syracuse  Horse  Show.     Dick 

Donnelly  up 186 

Ballsbridge  Horse  Show,  Dublin,  1913 202 

Olympia,  London,  1913 202 

Miss  Sarah  (1896) 216 

Dick  Christian,  a  famous  blood  hunter 216 


INTRODUCTION 

"Four  things  greater  than  all  things  are, 
Women  and  Horses,  Power  and  War." 

— Kipling. 

The  Duke  of  Wellington's  statement  that  "The 
Battle  of  Waterloo  was  won  on  Eton's  cricket  fields" 
may  possibly  not  apply  with  equal  force  to  the  last 
great  war.  It  remains  a  fact,  nevertheless,  that  the 
sportsmen  of  America  and  England  were  among  the 
first  to  enlist,  and  in  many  cases,  particularly  among 
the  horsemen,  they  joined  the  most  hazardous  branches 
of  the  service. 

What  is  more  important,  however,  than  that  sport 
should  render  the  men  of  the  nation  fit  and  game 
fighters,  is  that  sport  may  become — is  in  fact  rapidly 
becoming — one  of  the  means  of  establishing  more 
friendly  international  relations.  International  tennis 
tournaments,  golf  matches,  yacht  races — or  the  recent 
splendid  polo  match  played  at  Hurlingham — do  untold 
good  in  building  up  a  mutual  understanding,  a  closer 
feeling  of  fellowship,  and  a  common  interest  between 
the  peoples  of  the  world. 

It  is  often  foolishly  argued  that  wars  are  a  neces- 
sary evil,  without  which  nations  would  lose  their  viril- 
ity and  become  soft ;  but.  what  war  does  to  maintain 
the  stamina  of  a  nation,  sport  can  do,  and  do  far  better. 
For,  whereas  war  not  only  brutalizes  men,  but  also  de- 
stroys the  very  manly  vigor  it  creates,  sport  keeps  its 
votaries  in  splendid  health  until  advanced  old  age. 

This  last  is  especially  true  of  riding,  and  the  old  say- 

xiii 


xiv  INTRODUCTION 

ing,  "The  outside  of  a  horse  is  the  best  thing  for  the 
inside  of  a  man,"  has  been  indorsed  too  often  to  need 
repeating.  Here  in  America  men  and  women  are  in- 
clined to  be  old  at  sixty,  but  in  England  and  Ireland, 
where  one  sees  hundreds  of  men  and  women  with  gray 
hair  riding  hard  and  straight  to  hounds,  one  realizes 
that  this  is  one  of  the  reasons  for  their  vigorous,  rosy- 
cheeked  old  people.  Because  they  have  learned  how 
to  play,  they  have  also  learned  how  to  live,  and  live 
long.  After  all,  there  is  much  truth  in  the  old  French 
saying:  "The  gods  made  us  all  immortal;  old  age  is  a 
voluntary  thing." 

Moreover,  it  is  not  only  physical  fitness  that  is  ac- 
quired by  a  love  of  sport,  but  also  mental  and  moral 
qualities  of  greater  importance.  For  the  mind  as  well 
as  for  the  body,  there  is  nothing  quite  so  good  as  the 
great  out-of-doors.  "Few  evil  things  can  live  in  the 
sun."  As  long  as  we  are  obliged  to  five  in  human 
bodies,  a  clean,  wholesome,  healthy  body  is  far  more 
apt  to  house  a  clean  wholesome  mind. 

The  "whole  problem  of  life  is  not  to  make  life  easier, 
but  to  make  men  stronger,"  and  any  study,  action, 
emotion,  or  sport  that  can  lay  claim  to  doing  this,  has 
a  right  to  be  considered  a  moral  factor  for  good. 
Courage,  cool,  steady  nerves,  pluck  and  physical  en- 
durance are  not  only  by-products  of  the  health  in- 
duced by  sport,  but  are  particularly  cultivated  by  such 
sports  as  racing,  hunting,  and  polo,  in  which  the  ele- 
ment of  danger  plays  a  certain  part.  Nor  is  this  all; 
sport  cultivates,  in  fact  demands,  the  virtues  of  fair 
play,  educates  the  powers  of  observation  and  judgment, 
insists  on  self-discipline,  patience,  calmness,  and  the 
ability  to  control  one's  nerves  and  one's  temper.  The 
sportsman  must  be  open-handed  and  honorable,  and 


INTRODUCTION  xv 

must  be  able  to  admire  his  adversary's  best  qualities, 
must  be  a  good  loser  and  a  graceful  winner,  and  in  all 
things  "play  the  game."  In  other  words,  the  "true 
sportsman  and  the  true  gentleman  are  synonymous." 

I  thoroughly  agree  with  Frank  Sherman  Peer  when 
he  says,  in  "Cross  Country  with  Horse  and  Hound": 
"Nor  is  it  too  much  to  say  that  the  universal  love  of 
sports  in  England  is  one  of  the  principal  causes  of  her 
greatness  as  a  nation.  Fair  play  is  a  cardinal  virtue 
among  her  people.  The  lessons  the  youth  of  England 
absorbs  from  cricket,  football,  rowing,  and  other  out- 
door sports  of  skill  and  chance,  have  done  as  much  to 
establish  and  maintain  the  supremacy  of  that  little 
country  among  the  nations  of  the  world  as  have  all 
her  schools  and  colleges  and  churches  combined." 

What  is  true  of  men  is  equally  true  of  women. 
Courage,  and  strength,  and  nerve  are  as  essential  to  a 
woman  as  to  a  man,  and  by  right-minded  people  as 
much  admired  in  her  as  is  tenderness  and  kindness  and 
refinement  in  him. 

"In  the  long  years  liker  must  they  grow; 
The  Man  be  more  of  Woman,  she  of  man, 
He  gain  in  sweetness  and  in  moral  height, 
Nor  lose  the  wrestling  thews  that  throw  the  world; 
She  mental  breadth  nor  fail  in  childward  care, 
Nor  lose  the  childlike  in  the  larger  mind; 
Till  at  the  last  she  set  herself  to  man 
Like  perfect  music  unto  noble  words." 

It  is  wrong  to  suppose  that  to  be  a  sportswoman,  or 
a  fine  horsewoman  she  must  drink  and  swear  and  smoke, 
or  that  she  need  have  the  unsightly  biceps  of  a  man, 
look  like  a  scalped  Indian,  or  be  so  straight  and  flat- 
chested  as  to  lose  all  femininity.  Physical  fitness 
and  strength  of  character  do  not  necessarily  imply 


xvi  INTRODUCTION 

masculinity.  One  can  have  just  as  neat  an  ankle,  just 
as  graceful  a  figure,  even  a  tiny  mid- Victorian  waist,  and 
still  ride  hard  to  hounds  and  pound  the  whole  field. 
The  woman  who  can  be  a  "pal"  to  her  husband,  ac- 
company him  in  his  sports,  and  tramp  and  ride  with 
him  cross-country,  is  apt  to  hold  him  longer  and  be 
less  often  in  the  divorce  courts  than  the  woman  whose 
chief  attraction  is  looking  pretty,  playing  a  good  game 
of  cards,  and  dancing  the  latest  jazz.  She  will  not 
only  be  a  healthier,  happier,  more  companionable  wife, 
but  a  stronger,  healthier  mother,  with  stronger  children, 
and  a  younger-looking  more  cheerful  grandmother. 

Unfortunately,  in  this  country,  the  more  intellectual 
people  of  high  mental,  moral,  and  spiritual  standing 
do  not  realize  that  sport  offers  anything  but  purely 
physical  advantages.  If  a  man  or  a  woman  are  keen 
about  sport,  or  lovers  of  hunting  and  horses,  they  are 
accredited  with  having  brains  for  nothing  else.  At 
dinners  their  non-horsey  neighbors,  in  order  to  keep  the 
ball  of  conversation  rolling,  feel  in  duty  bound  to  rack 
their  brains  and  remember  something  about  their 
aunt's  grandmother's  brougham  horse  who  once  jumped 
a  fence.  To  say  the  least,  this  sort  of  thing  is  an  in- 
sult to  one's  intelligence.  Yet,  that  is  the  average 
serious-minded  American's  attitude  toward  the  horse- 
man or  horsewoman.  To  be  dubbed  "horsey,"  in  this 
country,  is  to  have  people  imply  that  you  have  the  in- 
telligence of  a  cabbage.  As  a  matter  of  pure  fact,  this 
attitude  is  unfortunately  sometimes  justified.  We  are 
a  nation  of  specialists,  and  although  our  average  of 
horsemanship  is  very  much  lower  than  in  England,  we 
are,  nevertheless,  able  to  produce  a  few  cracks,  who 
do  think,  breathe,  and  eat  nothing  but  horse,  and  there- 
fore can  beat  England's  best  at  their  own  game. 


INTRODUCTION  xvii 

Over  there  every  one,  young  and  old,  are  sportsmen 
and  horse  lovers.  It  is  part  of  a  child's  very  educa- 
tion. To  be  a  horseman  over  here  stamps  you  as 
rather  a  freak;  to  be  a  horseman  over  there  is  to  be 
normal,  and  does  not  in  the  least  imply  that  you  there- 
fore belong  to  a  certain  set  of  people  of  doubtful  intel- 
lectual ability.  England's  biggest  statesmen,  her  mer- 
chants, her  soldiers,  her  artists,  and  even  her  clergy 
are,  most  of  them,  sportsmen,  and  many  of  them  horse- 
men. It  is  time  indeed  that  America,  also,  began  to 
realize  that  one  can  be  just  as  great  in  one's  business 
or  work,  and  just  as  good  in  one's  life,  and  still  know 
how  to  play  healthily  and  happily  in  God's  great 
out-of-doors. 

Having  said  so  much  in  praise  of  England,  I  will 
perhaps  be  called  upon  to  defend  myself  from  the 
stigma  of  Anglomania.  True  patriotism  is,  to  my 
mind,  not  so  much  saying  that  "  everything  that  is 
American  is  best,"  but  rather  "the  best  of  everything 
for  America,"  and  throughout  this  book  I  shall  again 
and  again  quote  England  and  England's  methods,  be- 
cause, without  the  shadow  of  a  doubt,  she  is  as  far 
ahead  of  us  in  matters  of  sport,  as  France  and  Italy 
are  in  matters  of  music  and  art.  With  England,  sport 
is  a  national  institution,  and  unless  a  thing  is  a  national 
institution,  it  seldom  becomes  great.  If  we  wish  to 
equal  England  in  the  realms  of  sport,  we  can  only  do 
so  by  following  her  lead,  and  so  imbuing  all  the  young 
people  of  the  land  with  the  love  of  sport,  and  what 
sport  stands  for,  that  it  becomes  a  national  institution 
with  us,  as  it  has  been  with  her  for  generations  and 
generations. 


CHAPTER  I 
BUYING 

"The  ways  of  a  man  with  a  maid 
Be  strange,  but  tame 
To  the  ways  of  a  man  with  a  horse 
When  buying  or  selling  the  same." 

— Kipling. 

A  Tuscan  proverb  says  that  in  buying  a  horse  or 
taking  a  wife,  shut  your  eyes  tight  and  commend 
yourself  to  God.  I  am  not  so  sure  but  that  there  is 
a  whole  lot  of  truth  in  it.  Marriage  and  buying  horses 
are  both  a  lottery,  and  while  it  is  certain  that  the  more 
brains  you  put  into  the  choice  the  better  chance  you 
run  of  its  turning  out  satisfactorily,  still  there  is  no 
guarantee  that  even  the  wisest  will  not  sometimes 
be  fooled. 

There  are  many  different  types  of  buyers  and  many 
ways  of  buying  horses.  There  is,  for  example,  the 
excessively  rich  man  or  woman  trying  to  get  into 
society  via  the  door  labelled  " Horse  Shows"  who  de- 
sires to  own  a  large  stable,  which,  once  they  have 
acquired  it,  will  cease  to  interest  them.  They  will, 
in  all  probability,  do  their  buying  by  giving  their 
manager  or  stud-groom  carte  blanche  to  get  the  best 
that  money  can  buy.  If  the  groom  or  manager  hap- 
pens to  be  honest,  and  is  a  good  horseman,  he  will, 
by  means  of  an  unnecessarily  large  expenditure  of 
money,  collect  a  fair  enough  stable  of  animals.  How- 
ever, such  good  luck  is  rare.  To  be  a  really  good 
judge  of  a  horse  requires  more  brains  than  the  average 

1 


2  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

stud-groom  possesses.  He  may  be  a  good  rider  and 
an  excellent  "caretaker"  of  horses,  but  that  does  not 
necessarily  imply  that  his  opinion  is  worth  much  when 
it  comes  to  picking  a  horse.  He  may  talk  as  if  he 
knew  it  all,  and  describe  the  horses  his  choice  has 
fallen  upon  as  if  they  were  all  world-wonders,  but  in 
nine  cases  out  of  ten  his  own  self-interest  is  prompt- 
ing him.  It  is  a  perfectly  legitimate  practice  in  all 
horse-dealing  for  a  commission  to  pass  between  th'e 
groom  and  the  dealer,  but  it  is  a  practice  that  is  often 
taken  advantage  of  by  a  groom  with  elastic  morals, 
who  persuades  his  inexperienced  master  to  consummate 
any  sale  that  will  accrue  most  to  his  personal  advan- 
tage and  from  which  he  will  derive  the  largest  com- 
mission. 

In  any  case,  this  method  of  leaving  the  choice  of 
one's  horses  entirely  in  the  hands  of  an  employee,  no 
matter  how  trusted  he  may  be,  is  scarcely  one  that 
appeals  to  the  real  sportsman. 

Nor  can  the  true  lover  of  sport  indorse  the  practice 
of  buying,  at  fabulous  prices,  horse-show  champions 
as  they  emerge  from  the  ring  with  the  tricolored  ribbon. 
Any  one  with  sufficient  ready  cash  can  manage,  by 
this  scheme,  to  get  together  a  fairly  good  stable  of 
horses,  but  how  long  the  occupants  of  such  a  stable 
continue  to  be  champions  remains  to  be  seen.  For 
even  the  fabulous  price  merely  bought  the  horse  and 
not  the  rider,  and  in  more  cases  than  one,  to  those 
"in  the  know,"  the  rider  has  contributed  at  least  50 
per  cent  to  the  horse's  ability  to  win.  I  know  of  one 
gentleman  who  used  to  buy  and  sell  a  great  many 
horses  for  his  amusement,  and  who  hung  on  the  wall 
of  his  exercise-ring  a  large  sign:  "I  do  not  sell  the 
rider  with  the  horse." 


U 

= 


4-1 

o 


-  ! 


-       X 

c  S 

2 
o 

>> 


BUYING  3 

Most  of  us  who  have  been  in  the  horse-show  game 
for  any  length  of  time  have  seen  countless  champions, 
who,  after  changing  hands  and  being  poorly  trained 
and  badly  ridden,  deteriorate  so  rapidly  that  in  an 
unbelievably  short  time  they  are  no  longer  able  to 
win  even  in  a  local  show. 

Champions  that  can  be  bought  at  the  ringside  are, 
in  most  cases — unless  they  belong  to  a  dealer  or  some 
one  who  is  short  of  this  world's  goods — already  in  their 
zenith,  and  their  owners,  being  suspicious  that  their 
palmiest  days  are  over,  are  clever  enough,  or  mer- 
cenary enough,  to  sell  at  the  moment  at  which  the 
market  is  highest.  In  such  cases  the  deterioration  of 
the  ex-champion  in  the  hands  of  the  unlucky  pur- 
chaser is  still  more  rapid. 

In  any  case,  even  when  successful,  there  is  very 
little  real  pleasure,  and  even  less  sport,  to  be  found  in 
showing  horses  that  have  been  "brought  out"  and 
have  made  their  initial  success  under  others.  At  best, 
the  public  are  looking  for  flaws  in  your  way  of  train- 
ing and  riding,  and  if  the  horse  loses  it  is  all  your  fault, 
while  if  he  wins  the  credit  goes  to  his  former  owner  or 
trainer. 

There  is,  of  course,  no  objection  to  buying  an  occa- 
sional blue-ribbon  winner  if  you  particularly  fancy 
him  and  can  afford  the  price,  but  in  the  long  run  the 
real  sport  and  fun  of  the  thing  comes  in  "  bringing 
out"  a  young  one,  or  a  green  one,  and  having  the 
credit  for  his  first  victories. 

Buying  horses  either  through  means  of  one's  grooms 
or  by  searching  the  ringside  for  champions  are  temp- 
tations and  failings  that  fortunately  can  only  be  in- 
dulged in  by  the  very  wealthy.  Those  who  have  to 
count  their  pennies  and  still  find  the  "feed"  bill  very 


4  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

high  have  to  do  their  buying  in  a  different  and  more 
interesting  way,  but  one  equally  beset  with  pitfalls 
for  the  unwary. 

If,  though  ignorant  of  horse-flesh,  they  acknowledge 
their  ignorance,  they  may  avoid  some  of  these  mis- 
takes; but  if  they  are  ignorant  and  know  it  not,  as  is 
usually  the  case,  they  will  fall  into  one  of  two  diffi- 
culties: 

(1)  They  will  be  ensnared  by  some  unscrupulous 
dealer  whom  they  will  try  to  impress  with  their  vast 
knowledge,  be  secretly  laughed  at,  and  end  by  buy- 
ing a  " skate." 

(2)  They  will  rely  on  their  own  " superior"  knowl- 
edge and  attempt  to  buy  a  horse  at  auction,  or,  worse 
yet,  think  they  have  acquired  a  bargain  because  they 
have  managed  to  get  at  a  low  price  some  cast-off  from 
a  prominent  show  stable,  that,  according  to  the  ad- 
vertisement, is  "  being  entirely  sold  out  because  the 
owner  has  given  up  riding,  or  is  going  abroad." 

In  nine  cases  out  of  ten  so-called  " dispersal  sales" 
are  merely  a  process  of  weeding  out  the  culls.  The 
real  winners,  although  put  in  the  catalogue  as  in- 
cluded in  the  sale,  are  used  as  bait  to  attract  buyers, 
and  are  either  withdrawn  before  the  sale  or  else 
"bought  in."  It  is  not  a  very  honorable  practice  but 
one  very  commonly  indulged  in. 

Buying  at  auction  is  at  best,  even  for  an  experienced 
horseman,  a  very  ticklish  business.  There  is  no  way 
of  testing,  adequately,  the  prospective  purchase  before 
the  sale.  There  i-s  but  little  opportunity  to  learn  his 
past  except  by  hearsay,  and  it  is  extremely  difficult 
to  judge  much  of  his  way  of  going  or  his  manners 
during  the  few  short  runs  up  and  down  the  tan-bark 
at  the  sale.    There  is  method  in  the  madness  of  most 


BUYING  5 

auctions,  and  every  little  thing  that  is  done,  is  done 
for  the  purpose  of  bamboozling  the  buyer  into  think- 
ing the  horse  is  better  than  he  is.  If  the  animal  is 
badly  made  he  is  shown  under  saddle,  as  he  will  prob- 
ably look  better  " dressed  up";  if,  on  the  other  hand, 
he  is  bad-mannered,  he  will  most  probably  be  shown 
in  hand,  thus  giving  him  little  chance  to  play  up  when 
led  judiciously  around  the  ring  with  little  freedom 
of  the  head. 

All  horses  are  described  glowingly  in  auction  lists, 
and  if  one  could  believe  half  of  the  contents  one  would 
think  that  the  horseman's  Eldorado  had  been  reached. 
The  words  "safe  and  kind;  has  been  hunted  by  a  lady," 
interpreted  by  those  "in  the  know,"  suggest  that  the 
selfsame  lady  is  now  lying  somewhere  with  her  toes 
turned  up  to  the  roots  of  the  daisies  as  the  result 
of  this  hunting.  The  phrase  "will  jump  anything," 
rightly  read,  might  mean  either  that  the  animal  will 
jump  anything — providing,  of  course,  that  you  can 
ever  persuade  him  to  get  near  enough  in  order  to  be 
able  to  jump  it — or  else,  that  he  literally  plunges  over 
crags  and  chasms  when  you  are  merely  meaning  to  go 
out  for  a  quiet  little  hack. 

Buying  young  or  green  horses  from  the  breeders  or 
farmers  in  Virginia  or  Canada,  or  picking  up  promising 
discards  from  the  race-track  is  an  amusing,  and  often 
fairly  cheap,  method  of  obtaining  horses,  but  in  com- 
mon with  importing  horses  from  England  or  Ireland, 
it  is  only  successful  when  attempted  by  a  thoroughly 
experienced  horseman  and  should  never  be  tried  by 
the  novice. 

It  takes  a  fair  degree  of  knowledge  to  pick  even  an 
ordinary  hack  or  hunter,  and  to  choose  a  show  horse 
requires  more  than  an  exceptional  eye  for  a  horse;  it 


6  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

needs  a  knowledge  and  experience  possessed  by  very 
few  even  of  the  so-called  horsemen  of  the  day. 

Therefore,  don't  attempt  to  do  your  own  choosing, 
either  at  a  private  sale  or  auction,  unless  you  are  a 
sufficiently  good  horseman  or  horsewoman  to  pick  a 
horse  in  the  rough,  when  he  looks  like  a  woolly  bear; 
to  detect  unsoundness  almost  as  quickly  as  a  veter- 
inary; or  to  tell  if  a  horse  will  give  you  a  comfort- 
able ride  by  merely  watching  him  move. 

But  enough  of  how  not  to  buy  a  horse.  Let  us  see 
rather  what  is  the  besl  way  for  a  beginner  to  obtain 
a  really  good  animal,  irrespective  of  whether  he  is 
destined  for  the  show  ring  or  merely  for  hacking  and 
hunting. 

On  the  whole,  my  advice  is  to  let  the  choice  of  a 
horse  be  made  by  some  friend  who  is  a  "dyed  in  the 
wool"  horseman,  and  a  man  in  whom  you  can  put 
absolute  trust  and  reliance.  Tell  him  just  what  type 
of  horse  you  want,  what  purpose  you  want  to  use  him 
for,  and  how  much  you  are  willing  to  pay;  but  don't 
add  a  thousand  and  one  details  as  to  exact  height, 
sex,  color,  markings,  etc.  Leave  that  to  him,  for  it 
is  hard  enough  to  find  a  good  horse  anyway,  without 
being  hampered  by  all  sorts  of  foolish  and  unneces- 
sary restrictions.  After  he  has  picked  an  animal  for 
you,  even  though  he  may  have  ridden  the  horse  him- 
self, be  sure  to  ride  him  also  before  you  close  the  deal. 
This  precaution  is  particularly  necessary  if  you  are  a 
woman  and  your  adviser  is  a  man,  because  many  a 
horse  that  is  suited  in  his  gaits  to  the  latter  might  have 
too  little  hock  action  to  be  comfortable  for  the  former, 
or  a  horse  that  from  a  man's  point  of  view  merely 
went  "well  up  into  his  bridle,"  to  a  woman  would  seem 
to  take  too  much  of  a  hold  to  make  a  desirable  hack. 


BUYING  7 

If  you  are  not  quite  sure  the  animal  suits,  try  some- 
thing else ;  don't  be  persuaded  to  buy  the  horse  at  once 
out  of  fear  of  that  mythical  "  other  party,"  who  is 
supposed  to  be  waiting  just  around  the  corner  ready 
to  snatch  him  up  if  you  reject  him.  Horses,  unless 
they  are  very  exceptional  ones  and  times  are  very 
good,  don't  usually  sell  as  quickly  as  hot  cakes. 

Undoubtedly  many  people  brought  up  on  the  prin- 
ciple that  a  man  will  cheat  his  own  brother  in  horse- 
flesh, will  think  my  suggestion  to  mix  friendship  and 
horse-dealing  a  very  foolish  one,  and  will  prophesy 
that  it  is  one  likely  to  lead  to  trouble  and  a  breaking 
off  of  friendly  relations.  But  a  friendship  so  easily 
broken  off  is  not  worth  the  having,  for  by  "friend"  I 
do  not  mean  mere  acquaintance. 

If  one  is  not  fortunate  enough  to  possess  a  real 
friend  who  is  also  a  horseman,  then  I  think  the  next 
best  thing  for  the  novice  to  do  is  to  go  to  a  first-class, 
well-known  and  reputable  dealer  and  frankly  tell  him 
that  you  don't  know  much  about  a  horse  and  are 
relying  on  his  judgment  to  find  a  good  one,  and  nine 
cases  out  of  ten  he  will  be  more  apt  to  get  you  a  good 
animal  than  if  you  go  to  him  possessed  with  the  illu- 
sion that  you  are  going  to  be  able  to  hoodwink  him 
into  thinking  you  are  an  expert  judge. 

Owing  to  the  natural  uncertainties  regarding  the 
exact  quality  of  the  article  for  sale,  namely  the  horse, 
the  buying  and  selling  is  open  to  much  cheating  and 
lying  and  distrust  on  both  sides.  Nevertheless  there 
are  honest  dealers  who  will  treat  you  "white"  if 
placed  upon  their  honor  and  trusted.  They  really  try 
to  maintain  a  high  standard  of  reputation,  and  do 
their  best  to  satisfy  their  customers,  in  many  cases  to 
the  extent  of  taking  a  horse  back  if  he  does  not  suit. 


8  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

The  people  who  have  been  cheated  by  dealers  have 
usually  not  gone  to  reputable  ones,  and  they  have,  to 
boot,  gone  with  the  idea  that  they  are  going  to  be 
cheated.  They  are  also  apt  to  be  as  deceitful  with 
the  dealers  as  to  their  real  ability  to  ride,  or  the  length 
of  their  pocket-book,  as  he  is  with  them.  On  the 
whole,  I  have  found  that  "if  you  trust  men  they  will 
be  true  to  you,"  and  although  the  buying  and  selling 
of  horses  may  put  that  faith  to  a  stronger  and  more 
severe  test  than  anything  else,  I  still  cling  to  it. 

Occasionally  every  one  will  be  cheated  in  horse- 
flesh, as  in  everything  else,  but  on  the  whole  if  you 
never  manage  to  pick  up  a  good  horse,  and  are  always 
and  forever  being  disappointed,  then  I  can  only  say 
that  the  fault  probably  lies  largely  with  you. 

"Diving  and  finding  no  pearls  in  the  sea 
Blame  not  the  ocean;  the  fault  is  in  thee." 


CHAPTER  II 
CONFORMATION  AND  ACTION 

"A  head  like  a  snake,  and  a  skin  like  a  mouse, 
An  eye  like  a  woman,  bright,  gentle  and  brown, 
With  loins  and  a  back  that  would  carry  a  house, 
And  quarters  to  lift  him  smack  over  a  town." 

— Whtte  Melville. 

There  are,  as  we  have  already  said,  a  few  fortunate 
people  who  possess  an  almost  intuitive  eye  in  judging 
a  horse,  but  the  vast  majority  of  men,  and,  even  more, 
women,  never  attempt  to  acquire  any  technical  knowl- 
edge about  a  horse,  and  learn  what  little  they  do  know 
only  through  bitter  experiences  and  disappointments. 
To  become  a  good  judge  of  conformation  requires 
careful  study,  and  it  goes  without  saying  that  whether 
we  rely  on  the  judgment  of  others  in  buying  our  horses, 
or  whether  we  make  our  own  purchases,  the  more  we 
learn  about  the  proper  conformation,  gaits,  etc.,  of  a 
horse  the  better  fitted  we  are  eventually  to  become 
finished  horsemen  or  horsewomen. 

There  are  certain  primary  observations  which  should 
always  be  kept  in  mind  when  judging.  In  choosing  a 
horse  we  should  endeavor  to  pick  one  in  whom  there 
is  no  one  very  weak  point,  or  no  one  part  of  his  anatomy 
that  is  disproportionately  powerful  to  the  rest.  A 
chain  is  only  as  strong  as  its  weakest  link.  As  it  is 
well-nigh  impossible  to  find  absolute  perfection  of 
shape  in  any  horse,  special  attention  should  be  paid 
to  those  points  of  conformation  which  are  essential 
for  the  class  of  work  required,  and  to  the  minor  fail- 
ings we  may  close  an  eye.    The  most  we  can  seek  is 

9 


10        •  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

an  animal  "with  many  good,  few  indifferent,  and  no 
bad  points."  It  may  happen,  for  example,  that  minor 
deficiencies  are,  to  a  certain  degree,  rendered  less  ob- 
jectionable by  some  counterbalancing  good  point  in 
the  horse's  anatomy.  It  may  even  be  that  one  fault 
is  counteracted  somewhat  by  another  fault.  For  ex- 
ample, a  horse  who  is  somewhat  light  in  bone  below 
the  knee  would  be  less  likely  to  fail  at  that  point  were 
he  also  a  bit  light  of  frame.  Neither  of  these  are  ad- 
mirable in  themselves,  and  yet  the  combination  would 
be  preferable  to  a  horse  who  was  light  of  bone  but  very 
heavily  built  as  to  his  body. 

What  actually  constitutes  a  bad  point  depends 
largely  on  the  type  of  work  to  be  demanded  of  the 
horse.  Good  points  in  any  animal,  and  particularly 
in  the  one  we  are  studying,  are  based  not  merely  on  a 
standard  of  ideal  beauty,  but  on  the  principles  of 
mechanics,  and  certain  qualifications  and  proper  pro- 
portions are  applicable  to  all  types  of  horses — from 
the  17-hand  Percheron  to  the  Shetland  pony.  In- 
asmuch, however,  as  there  are  special  points  essential 
for  special  kinds  of  work,  each  class  of  horse — the  racer, 
the  hunter,  and  the  saddle  horse — differ  in  many  points 
of  conformation  and  gaits,  and  what  might  be  admirable 
in  the  one  would  be  objectionable  in  the  other,  and 
vice  versa.  This  is  the  case  even  in  horses  as  closely 
allied  in  type  and  work  as  the  hunter  and  the  hack. 
Especial  emphasis  will  be  laid  on  these  differences 
later,  but  for  the  present  we  will  limit  ourselves  to  a 
discussion  of  those  qualifications  of  conformation 
common  to  both. 

A  well-shaped  head  should  be  fairly  small  and  finely 
chiselled.  The  head  must  denote  the  sex  of  the  animal; 
the  male  animal,  and  in  particular  the  stallion,  being 


1. 

Forehead 

2. 

Nose 

3. 

Nostril 

4. 

Chin  groove 

5. 

Jowl 

6. 

Neck 

7. 

Poll 

8. 

Crest 

9. 

Windpipe 

10. 

Shoulder 

11. 

Point  of  shoulder 

12. 

Elbow 

13. 

Withers 

14. 

Forearm 

15. 

Knee 

16. 

Cannon-bone 

17.  Pastern 

18.  Fetlock 

19.  Hoof 

20.  Ribs 

21.  Belly 

22.  Stifle 

23.  Thigh 

24.  Gaskin 

25.  Hock 

26.  Cannon-bone 

27.  Coronet 

28.  Dock 

29.  Croup — or  crupper  line 

30.  Loin 

31.  Back 


12  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

less  delicate  and  more  masculine  in  appearance  than 
that  of  a  mare.  Although  small,  the  head  should  be 
wide  across  the  forehead  and  between  the  eyes.  It  is 
a  fact  that  some  small,  well-bred  heads  are  actually 
wider  between  the  eyes  than  large,  coarse  heads.  As 
the  brain  matter  of  a  horse  lies  in  this  region  this  is 
particularly  important. 

The  angles  of  the  jaws  should  be  wide  at  the  jowl 
to  allow  ample  room  for  the  windpipe. 

The  outline  of  the  nose  may  be  either  straight,  con- 
cave (common  among  Arabs),  or  convex.  The  latter 
is  called  a  "  Roman  nose,"  and  is  apt  to  denote  a  head- 
strong disposition.  The  nostrils  should  be  large  and 
wide,  for  a  horse  breathes  entirely  through  his  nose. 

The  eyes  should  be  clear,  mild,  large,  full,  and 
prominent.  Horses  with  sunken  eyes  are  usually  of  a 
suspicious  nature — probably  because  they  cannot  see 
well  behind  them.  Small,  sunken  eyes  (termed  "pig 
eyes")  generally  denote  a  vicious  disposition,  and 
should  therefore  be  avoided.  Horses  who  constantly 
look  back  at  the  rider,  instead  of  boldly  ahead,  are  apt 
to  be  ready  for  mischief;  but  a  horse  who  shows  the 
whites  of  his  eyes,  though  he  may  be  high-strung  and 
nervous,  is  not  necessarily  vicious,  as  is  usually  sup- 
posed. 

The  ears  are  an  important  indication  of  breeding 
and  disposition.  The  ideal  ears  are  comparatively 
small,  evenly  shaped,  are  not  noticeably  curved  in  or 
out,  and  are  placed  moderately  far  apart.  Ears  kept  in 
constant  motion  denote  mental  activity,  but  when  the 
motion  is  restless  the  horse  is  apt  to  be  nighty  and 
fidgety.  Ears  that  are  frequently  laid  back  show  a 
mean  disposition  and  an  inclination  to  kick  or  bite. 
Large  mule  ears,  although  not  beautiful,  are  often  a 


CONFORMATION   AND  ACTION  13 

sign  of  intelligence  and  a  willing  disposition,  while 
"lop"  ears,  flopping  sidewise  like  those  of  a  hare,  are 
still  less  beautiful,  but  denote  a  placid,  generous  but 
slightly  sluggish  disposition.  Very  small  ears,  that 
are  pricked  inward  at  the  points,  called  " rabbit  ears," 
are  extremely  pretty,  but  generally  belong  to  a  hot- 
tempered  horse  with  a  strong  will  of  his  own. 

The  neck  should  be  moderately  long,  and  the  upper 
outline  should  be  convex  rather  than  cancave.  A 
concave  neck,  one  that  is  "put  on  upside  down,"  is 
called  a  ewe  neck.  It  is  not  only  extremely  ugly  but 
is  also,  mechanically,  a  bad  formation.  Horses  so 
formed  are  unsightly  and  difficult  to  control,  as  they 
are  unable  to  flex  their  necks,  and  consequently  they 
stick  their  noses  in  the  air  and  are  what  is  called  "star 
gazers."  On  the  other  hand,  horses  whose  necks  are 
too  much  bent  are  generally  apt  to  pull,  inasmuch 
as  they  are,  through  this  peculiar  formation,  able  to 
press  their  chins  against  their  chests  whenever  they 
feel  the  bit.  Short  thick  necks  are  ungraceful,  and 
render  the  animal  unhandy  to  control,  but  then,  again, 
horses  whose  necks  are  too  thin  and  pliable,  and  too 
much  cut  out  at  the  jowl,  are  apt  to  go  wrong  in  the 
wind,  owing  to  the  fact  that  the  breathing  tubes  have 
insufficient  room.  This  type  of  neck  is  called  a  "swan 
neck."  The  upper  part  of  a  well-shaped  neck  should 
be  long,  and,  though  thin  when  viewed  from  the  side, 
should  appear  deep  through  when  looked  at  from 
above.  "The  late  Charley  Wise,  of  Eton,  the  eminent 
dealer  in  the  'fifties  and  sixties,'  than  whom  no  better 
judge  existed,  was  wont  to  point  out  that  the  neck 
was  the  first  place  that  a  horse  began  to  tire;  and  he 
used  to  insist  upon  the  muscles  just  behind  the  poll 
being  very  well  developed  (which  can  be  particularly 


14  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

well  observed  when  seated  on  the  animal),  but  that 
when  seen  sidewise  the  neck  should  appear  light  and 
elegant.  Long  subsequent  experience  has  shown  that 
he  was  right,  and  it  will  be  noticed  on  the  turf  that  no 
horse  ever  stays  in  long-distance  races  unless  he  pos- 
sesses such  conformation." 

It  will  readily  be  seen,  then,  that  the  formation  of 
the  neck,  and  the  way  in  which  it  is  set  on  the  body, 
is  not  merely  a  matter  of  looks,  but  has  considerable 
influence  on  the  strength  of  the  horse  and  on  the  ex- 
tent to  which  the  bit  will  act  on  his  mouth.  A  horse 
with  a  good  neck  and  a  well-set-on  head  will  have  a 
better  mouth,  be  able  to  flex  himself  more  readily,  and 
be  handier  than  one  in  whom  these  points  are  lacking. 
Illustration  facing  page  2  shows  a  good  neck,  and  a 
well-set-on  and  nicely  shaped  head. 

In  all  horses  that  are  to  be  used  for  saddle  work, 
fairly  high  and  sloping  withers  are  desirable  for  the 
freedom  of  action  which  they  bestow.  In  England, 
however,  a  wither  with  more  muscular  development  is 
preferred,  since  it  makes  it  easier  to  keep  the  saddle 
in  place.  A  horse  with  either  an  extremely  low  fore- 
hand, or  an  excessively  high  and  straight,  pointed 
wither,  is  extremely  uncomfortable  as  a  lady's  mount. 
The  latter  type  of  wither  is  apt  to  get  rubbed  by  the 
saddle  and,  owing  to  its  sharpness,  is  too  readily  felt 
by  a  woman's  right  leg  through  the  flap  of  the  saddle. 

Excessively  low  withers  usually  go  with  a  straight 
shoulder,  but  beginners  must  not  confuse  the  wither 
with  the  shoulder,  or  vice  versa.  The  horse  in  illus- 
tration facing  page  2  has  a  wither  that  is  neither  too 
high  nor  yet  too  low. 

In  a  draft  or  harness  horse  there  is  not  the  same 
objection  to  a  straight  shoulder.     In  fact,  it  is  the  type 


CONFORMATION  AND  ACTION  15 

of  shoulder  best  adapted  to  carrying  a  collar,  but  in  a 
saddle  horse  or  hunter  the  ideal  shoulder  is  an  oblique 
or  slanting  one.  This  is  a  fact  that  is  well  known 
even  to  novices,  but  few  people  ever  stop  to  ask  them- 
selves why  a  horse  used  for  saddle  purposes  needs  an 
oblique  shoulder,  and  what  really  constitutes  an 
oblique  shoulder.  This  question  of  the  proper  rela- 
tion of  shoulder  and  wither  is,  perhaps,  the  most 
difficult  one  for  a  beginner,  in  the  study  of  a  horse's 
anatomy,  to  fully  master. 

The  popular  notion  that  an  oblique  shoulder  is 
necessary  to  produce  speed  is  quite  wrong.  The  pro- 
pelling power  in  a  race-horse  comes  chiefly  from  behind, 
and  some  of  our  fastest  track  performers  have  upright 
shoulders. 

But  race  riding  is  a  very  different  thing  from  hack- 
ing and  hunting.  In  the  former  the  comfort  of  the 
rider,  perched  up  in  his  tiny  saddle,  is  not  considered 
at  all,  and  speed  alone  is  the  essential  thing.  In  the 
hack  or  the  hunter  the  comfort  of  the  rider  and  in  the 
hunter  the  ability  to  jump  well  are  of  more  importance 
than  mere  ability  to  cover  the  ground  quickly. 

Now,  it  has  been  proven  by  long  experience  that  an 
oblique  shoulder  is  most  favorable  for  the  mechanical 
working  of  the  muscles  and  tendons  of  the  forehand, 
and  that  a  horse  with  this  formation  walks,  trots,  and 
canters  with  freer  action  than  a  straight-shouldered 
animal,  and  is,  therefore,  more  comfortable  to  ride 
and  is  less  apt  to  fall  if  he  stumbles  or  makes  a  mis- 
take at  a  jump.  Furthermore,  an  oblique-shouldered 
horse  is  pleasanter  to  sit  on,  inasmuch  as  the  saddle 
is  thereby  placed  well  over  the  centre  of  gravity  and 
the  rider  has  "plenty  of  rein  in  front  of  him." 

Some  writers  try  to  convince  the  reader  that  because 


16 


HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 


a  saddle  is  as  likely  to  slip  forward  on  a  horse  with  a 
good  shoulder  but  a  low  wither,  the  withers  are  the 
main  thing  to  be  considered;  and  a  horse  with  a  high 
wither  and  a  straight  shoulder  is  preferable  to  one 
with  an  oblique  shoulder  and  a  low  wither.  If  the 
correct  position  of  the  saddle  on  the  horse's  back  were 
the  only  advantage  derived  from  an  oblique  shoulder, 
we  might  concede  their  point,  but  our  contention  is 
that  the  main  advantage  to  be  gained  from  this  forma- 
tion is  the  aided  mechanical  freedom  and  perfection 
of  stride. 

So  much  for  the  reason  why  an  oblique  shoulder  is 
preferable  in  a  horse  to  be  used  under  saddle.  Let 
us  now  consider  what  really  constitutes  an  oblique 
shoulder. 

To  begin  with,  the  shoulder  is  not  one  bone,  as  it  is 
commonly  spoken  of.     It  consists  of  (a)  the  scapula 


Fia.  1 

A.  Scapula 


Fia.  2 

B.  Humerus 


Fig.  3 
C.  Shoulder  Joint 


Fig.  4 


or  shoulder  blade  proper,  and  (6)  the  humerus  or  true 
arm.  The  shoulder  blade  lies  obliquely  forward  from 
the  withers,  and  joins  the  true  arm  at  what  is  com- 
'monry  called  "the  point  of  the  shoulder."  The  scap- 
ula should  be  slanting  and  long  (see  Figure  1).     If  it 


CONFORMATION  AND  ACTION  17 

is  straight  (see  Figure  2),  or  short  (see  Figure  3),  or 
straight  and  short  (see  Figure  4),  there  will  be  a  me- 
chanical deficiency  of  power  and  often  an  unpleasant 
and  lumbering  gait.  Moreover,  with  such  a  formation 
the  saddle  is  liable  to  work  forward  and  the  rider  be 
placed  off  the  centre  of  gravity. 

It  is,  then,  in  this  upper  bone  that  the  oft-quoted 
length  and  slant  of  the  shoulder  should  lie.  The  lower 
bone,  or  humerus,  on  the  contrary,  should  be  rather 
short  and  straight  (see  Figure  1)  in  order  to  bring  the 
horse's  fore  legs  under  him  in  the  proper  position.  In 
a  well-formed  horse  a  line,  called  the  perpendicular 
line,  dropped  from  the  point  of  the  shoulder,  should 
nearly  touch  the  point  of  the  toe.  If  this  lower  bone 
of  the  shoulder  is  too  long  or  oblique  (see  Figures  2 
and  4)  it  will  have  the  effect  of  placing  the  animal's 
fore  legs  too  far  under  him,  thus  bringing  his  weight 
too  far  forward  and  resulting  in  the  centre  of  gravity 
being  as  much  out  of  line  as  it  would  be  in  a  horse  in 
whom  the  upper  shoulder  blade  was  straight.  There- 
fore, even  though  a  horse  may  have  a  good  scapula,  or 
shoulder  blade,  unless  he  also  has  a  short,  straight,  and 
properly  proportioned  lower  bone,  he  could  not  be 
said  to  possess  a  really  oblique  shoulder.  It  is  in  this 
respect  that  some  people  seem  to  confound,  or  rather 
interchange,  the  terms  of  what  is,  in  truth,  an  oblique 
shoulder  with  one  in  which  only  the  upper  blade  is 
at  the  correct  angle  but  counterbalanced  by  the 
wrong  position  of  the  lower  bone.  One  author  says 
that  it  is  not  enough  to  rely  on  slanting  shoulders, 
when  it  is  quite  as  much  a  question  of  the  setting  on 
of  the  fore  legs.  He  says,  for  example,  "If  a  horse 
has  slanting  shoulders  and  also  a  long,  oblique,  true 
arm,  that  brings  the  setting  of  the  fore  legs  well  back, 


18  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

you  have  lost  all  you  have  gained  by  the  slanting 
shoulder."  *  This  is  true,  but  the  whole  point  of  the 
matter  is  that  the  very  setting  on  of  the  fore  legs  is, 
in  itself,  a  part  of  a  good  shoulder,  and  no  shoulder 
can  correctly  be  called  a  good,  oblique  shoulder  unless 
both  bones  are  in  their  relative  and  correct  positions. 

There  is,  however,  one  point  on  the  question  of 
shoulders  which  is  of  even  more  importance  than  the 
relative  lengths  or  positions  of  either  bones,  namely, 
that  the  shoulder,  be  it  upright  or  oblique,  is  in  no 
way  muscle-bound,  but  supple  and  free  to  move. 

Now  it  is  one  thing  to  know  clearly  what  consti- 
tutes a  good  shoulder — in  a  skeleton,  for  example — 
and  quite  another  matter  to  pick  the  defects  of  a 
shoulder  in  the  living  animal;  for  in  the  latter  the  bones 
are  completely  covered  by  muscles  and  flesh.  Perhaps 
the  only  reliable  way  to  become  a  good  judge  of  what 
constitutes  a  good  shoulder  is  by  constant  observation 
and  by  riding.  In  galloping  down-hill,  in  particular, 
the  horse  with  the  oblique  shoulder  will  give  you  a 
safer  and  quite  different  "feel"  than  a  straight- 
shouldered  animal. 

The  chest  should  be  deep  in  order  to  give  ample 
room  for  the  breathing  organs  and  heart.  A  horse  can 
never  be  too  "deep  through  the  heart,"  for  this  forma- 
tion not  only  increases  the  breathing  capacity  of  the 
animal,  but  also,  on  a  deep-girthed  horse,  the  saddle 
is  less  apt  to  slip  than  on  a  shallow-chested  animal. 
On  the  other  hand,  although  in  no  way  contracted, 
the  chest  should  not  appear  broad,  for  this  places  the 
animal's  fore  legs  too  far  apart,  causes  a  rolling  gait, 
and,  under  a  man's  saddle,  spreads  the  rider's  legs  tod 
greatly. 

*  "Cro6s  Country  with  Horse  and  Hound,"  by  Mr.  F.  S.  Peer. 


CONFORMATION  AND  ACTION  19 

One  usually  hears  the  cry  that  a  horse  should  be 
"short  in  the  back"  and  that  a  long  back  denotes 
weakness,  while  the  reverse  spells  strength.  In  theory 
this  may  be  all  very  well,  but  it  is  rather  overdone  in 
practice.  Excepting  in  cases  where  the  animal  is 
expected  to  carry  great  weight,  a  certain  amount  of 
length  in  a  horse's  back  is  essential  to  speed  and  most 
necessary  to  comfort,  for  a  horse  with  an  excessively 
short  back  is  apt  to  have  a  choppy  way  of  going.  The 
horse  in  illustration  facing  page  2  has  a  good  back. 

Wliether  a  back  be  long  or  short,  it  should,  in  all 
cases,  be  well-muscled  up  and  be  straight  and  flat. 
A  hollow  or  "sway"  back  is  most  uncomfortable,  de- 
notes weakness,  and  is  liable  eventually  to  give  way 
altogether.  All  backs,  however  straight,  through  the 
wasting  of  the  muscles  and  the  constant  pressure  of 
weight  along  the  top  line,  with  age  become  swayed; 
but  a  back  starting  out  with  this  formation  becomes 
doubly  weak.  A  slightly  "roached"  back  often  de- 
notes muscular  development,  whereas  a  pronounced 
roach  is  a  detriment  not  only  because  it  is  unsightly 
but  principally  because  it  is  apt  to  signify  that  the 
horse  is  muscle-bound  at  this  point. 

The  ribs  should  be  well  arched  and  "run  well  back," 
although  a  horse  must  not  be  too  closely  ribbed.  If  a 
horse's  ribs  are  not  sufficiently  sprung,  and  he  is  flat- 
sided,  there  will  be  insufficient  room  for  his  digestive 
organs.  Horses  thus  formed  are  termed  "light  in  the 
barrel,"  and  will  seldom  stand  up  to  hard  work.  It 
is  extremely  difficult  for  the  inexperienced  to  tell 
exactly  how  well  ribbed  up  an  animal  is.  If  he  is  in 
poor  condition  they  are  inclined  to  think  him  light  in 
the  ribs,  whereas  the  same  animal,  if  he  is  fat  and  "fit 
for  the  knife,"  will  not  show  the  defect  at  all.     It  takes 


20  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

a  clever  eye  to  detect  quickly  how  much  is  flesh  and 
how  much  actual  conformation  of  the  animal's  ribs. 

The  loins  of  a  horse  should  be  well  developed,  and 
the  thighs  should  be  deep  and  full.  While  there  must 
be  sufficient  space  between  the  thighs  to  prevent  fric- 
tion, a  horse  whose  thighs  lack  muscular  development, 
and  who  is  "split  up  behind,"  is  apt  to  be  weak  in 
these  parts.  When  seen  from  the  back  the  thighs 
should  appear  gradually  to  merge,  "V "-shaped,  into 
the  muscles  immediately  above  the  hocks — termed 
"second  thighs." 

From  a  point  of  beauty  the  hips  should  be  rounded 
and  evenly  turned,  and  the  muscles,  no  matter  how 
powerful  they  may  be,  should  be  smoothly  and  evenly 
laid  on.  Ragged  hips  are  unsightly  but  are  not  neces- 
sarily a  detriment.  A  dropped  "hip,"  or  one  in  which 
the  muscles  have  shrunk,  denotes  a  weakness  and  is 
to  be  avoided. 

The  crupper  line  of  a  well-bred  horse  is  straight,  as 
a  rule;  but  excessively  sloping  rumps  (goose  rumps,  or 
sometimes  called  jumping-rumps),  although  unsightly, 
often  denote  great  power  and  jumping  ability. 

Of  course  it  is  of  great  importance  that  proportion 
exists  between  the  hind  and  fore  quarters  of  a  horse, 
for  if  there  is  too  great  propelling  power  behind  and 
too  little  strength  in  front  the  horse  will  not  be  well- 
balanced.  Looking  at  the  body  as  a  whole  it  should 
be  evenly  developed,  the  entire  "top"  line  of  the  back, 
from  withers  to  croup,  should  be  straight  without  any 
undue  angularities,  and  the  entire  lower  line  of  the 
belly  be  more  or  less  horizontal  and  neither  hang  down 
unduly  nor  yet  "be  tucked  up"  at  the  waist. 

A  horse  should  stand  squarely  on  all  four  legs,  as  any 
divergence  from  the  perpendicular  places  undue  strain 


CONFORMATION  AND  ACTION  21 

on  some  other  part  of  the  anatomy.  He  should  stand 
over  a  lot  of  ground,  i.  e.,  should  have  plenty  of  length 
between  his  fore  legs  and  hind  legs  when  these  are 
placed  evenly  and  squarely.  Grooms,  in  order  to  give 
an  idea  of  length  are  in  the  habit  of  teaching  horses  to 
"spread"  their  fore  and  hind  legs  as  far  apart  as 
possible,  with  the  former  straddling  away  out  in  front 
and  the  latter  almost  in  another  county.  This  ridic- 
ulous and  ugly  trick  deceives  no  one  but  a  fool. 

The  fore  leg  should  be  about  even  with  a  plumb-line 
dropped  from  the  point  of  the  shoulder  to  the  point 
of  the  toe,  and  it  should  be  flat  on  the  sides,  narrow- 
ing toward  the  back  like  a  razor.  The  elbows  should 
stand  clear  of  the  chest  and  not  be  "tied  in"  toward 
the  body,  for  an  animal  with  this  defect  is  bound  to 
be  cramped  in  his  action,  a  fact  very  easily  noticed 
when  he  walks  away  from  the  observer.  The  knees 
should  be  well  let  down,  or,  in  other  words,  the 
radius  or  upper  bone  should  be  longer  than  the  lower 
or  cannon-bone  (see  horse  in  illustration  facing  page 
2).  This  formation  will  enable  the  hoof  just  to  clear 
the  elbow  when  the  leg  is  lifted  and  the  knee  is  bent 
to  its  limit.  The  bones  of  the  forearm  should  be  well 
supplied  with  muscles,  and  immediately  above  the 
knee  the  leg  should  appear  broad  from  any  angle. 
The  knees  in  themselves  are  composed  of  many  bones, 
which  are  best  able  to  stand  the  wear  and  tear  that 
they  get  if  they  are  well  formed  and  fairly  large. 
Viewed  from  the  front  the  knees  should  appear  large, 
wide,  and  prominent,  but  from  the  side  they  should 
appear  straight  and  flat  and  show  no  tendency  to  cave 
in  backward  (calf -kneed),  nor  yet  forward  (knee- 
sprung).  The  first  formation  causes  undue  strain  to 
fall  on  the  back  tendons  and  ligaments,  but  the  second 


22  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

defect,  although  unsightly,  is  not  necessarily  a  sign  of 
weakness.  If  it  is  a  natural  formation  it  is  not  so 
detrimental  as  the  more  common  "over  in  the  knees" 
variety,  which  is,  as  a  rule,  a  result  of  overwork  having 
weakened  the  muscles  of  the  knee.  The  tendons  back 
of  the  cannon-bone  should  be  absolutely  parallel  and 
should  neither  "bow"  outward  nor  be  "tied  in,"  or 
what  is  termed  "cut  out,"  immediately  beneath  the 
knee,  for  this  predisposes  to  weakness  in  these  parts. 

These  tendons  should  be  tense  and  hard  to  the  touch, 
and  the  space  between  the  tendon  and  the  bone  should 
look  and  feel  "hollow."  If  it  is  filled  with  soft  sub- 
stances it  is  called  "gummy"  and  is  not  likely  to  stand 
up  to  much  work.  The  quality  of  the  tendons  and 
the  quality  as  well  as  the  quantity  of  the  bone  are 
the  most  important  considerations  in  determining  the 
amount  of  work  and  weight  a  horse  is  up  to.  The  size  of 
the  leg  has  little  to  do  with  the  bone,  for  it  is  the  quality 
of  the  latter  rather  than  its  quantity  that  counts. 
The  bone  of  a  thoroughbred,  for  example,  is  harder 
and  denser  and  more  nearly  resembles  ivory  than 
that  of  a  common  horse,  which  is  usually  porous  and 
of  softer  material.  Therefore,  the  bone  of  the  former 
is  far  stronger  in  proportion  to  its  size.  For  this  reason 
measuring  a  horse's  leg  does  not  always  tell  the  whole 
story,  and  a  good  wiry  bone,  with  clean  sinew,  although 
smaller  in  actual  size,  should  be  preferred  to  a  larger 
bone  of  poorer  texture  surrounded  by  "gummy"  tissue. 

Sharply  defined  ankles  usually  accompany  good  bone 
and  clean  sinews,  while  "round"  ankles,  which  merge 
without  any  distinct  fine  of  demarcation  into  the  leg, 
are  generally  a  sign  of  low  breeding  and  poor  bone. 

The  pasterns  should  be  neither  very  upright,  for  this 
causes  a  horse  to  be  hard  and  stilty  in  his  action  and 


* 

£, 


Froni  the  painting  by  F.  V.  \'oss. 

Robert  L.  Gerry,  Esq.,  on  Hamsah. 
By  Azra  out  of  Emily  O. 


CONFORMATION  AND  ACTION  23 

uncomfortable  to  ride,  nor  should  they  be  excessively 
sloping.  The  latter  formation  is  apt  to  denote  great 
speed  and  is  very  elastic,  but  in  common  with  exces- 
sively short  pasterns  does  not  stand  up  to  work  very 
well  and  is  often  subject  to  ringbone.  Illustration  fac- 
ing page  2  shows  a  pastern  sufficiently  sloping  to  give 
an  elastic  tread  yet  strong  enough  to  stand  work. 

The  forefeet,  when  viewed  from  the  front,  should 
turn  neither  out  nor  in,  but  of  the  two  evils  the  latter 
is  preferable;  for  horses  whose  feet  turn  out  are  apt 
to  brush  and  interfere.  Feet  which  are  either  above 
or  below  the  average  in  size  are  apt  to  be  brittle  and 
cause  foot  trouble,  while  the  possessors  of  very  small 
feet  are  predisposed  to  stumble.  The  horn  or  wall  of 
the  foot  should  be  smooth,  sound,  and  long  enough  to 
give  depth  of  fully  an  inch  behind.  The  slope  of  the 
horn  of  a  perfect  foot  should  be  about  50  degrees  to 
60  degrees  from  the  ground.  A  greater  angle  pre- 
disposes to  contraction,  and  flatter  or  more  shallow 
feet  with  very  low  heels  are  liable  to  corns,  laminitis, 
etc.  The  hind  feet  are  generally  more  upright  in 
slope  than  those  in  front  (about  60  degrees).  Con- 
tracted feet  or  those  of  different  size,  should  be  re- 
garded with  suspicion.  White  feet  are  usually  more 
predisposed  to  disease  than  dark  ones. 

A  rough,  chipped  appearance  of  the  horn  denotes 
undue  brittleness,  while  " rings"  are  usually  a  sign  of 
disease.  They  are,  however,  sometimes  seen  on  horses 
at  grass,  due  to  the  alteration  of  the  succulence  of  the 
grass  at  various  seasons,  but  it  takes  an  experienced 
eye  to  be  able  to  tell  grass  rings  from  those  caused  by 
disease,  and  they  should  therefore  be  looked  upon  with 
suspicion  until  their  origin  can  be  determined  and 
verified. 


24  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

The  soles  of  the  feet  should  be  moderately  concave, 
smooth,  and  hard,  and  show  no  scabby  or  chalky  con- 
dition. The  frog  or  elastic  cushion  in  the  foot  should 
be  clearly  denned,  and  be  soft  and  pliable.  The 
heels  and  bars  should  be  neither  too  narrow,  which 
denotes  contraction,  nor  yet  too  wide,  which  is  a  sign 
of  weakness. 

The  same  rules  which  apply  to  the  forefeet  apply 
equally  well  to  the  hind  feet,  but  as  a  general  rule  the 
hind  feet  are  less  subject  to  disease,  and  while  they 
should  not  be  neglected,  are  not  so  important  as  the 
forefeet,  which  carry  the  greater  part  of  the  horse's 
weight. 

A  well-shaped  hind  leg  is,  perhaps,  one  of  the  most 
beautiful  portions  of  a  horse's  anatomy.  The  greatest 
length  in  the  leg  should  be  from  the  hip  to  the  hock. 
Thirty-nine  inches  from  point  to  point  is  considered 
desirable,  and  a  horse  can  never  be  too  "let  down," 
nor  can  the  portion  of  the  leg  below  the  hock  ever  be 
too  short. 

Two  bones,  the  femur  and  the  tibia,  joined  together, 
form  the  upper  part  of  the  hind  leg.  The  femur  should 
lie  obliquely  forward,  and  the  tibia  obliquely  back,  as 
in  this  formation  the  hind  leg  is  brought  into  its  proper 
place.  When  the  bones  are  so  placed  the  stifle  appears 
prominent  and  well  defined.  That  much-to-be-desired 
thing,  a  good  straight  hind  leg,  means  that,  viewed 
from  the  side,  the  hocks  and  the  fetlocks  should  he  a 
very  little  back  of  a  line  dropped  from  the  point  of  the 
buttocks.  The  hock,  like  the  knee,  is  composed  of  a 
collection  of  small  bones,  and  if  denned  and  bony  is 
less  liable  to  disease.  A  so-called  "rough"  hock  is 
preferable  to  an  ill-formed  small  one.  Viewed  from 
the  rear  the  hocks  should  incline  neither  in  nor  out. 


CONFORMATION  AND  ACTION  25 

The  first,  termed  " cow-hocked"  or  " sickle-hocked," 
is  an  essentially  weak  formation,  while  a  horse  whose 
hocks  turn  out  travels  too  wide  behind.  Both  types 
are  predisposed  to  disease,  such  as  curb  and  spavin. 

The  tendons  below  the  hock  should,  like  those  on 
the  fore  legs,  be  clean  and  rigid,  resembling  aa  fat 
lead-pencil  laid  on  behind  the  hocks." 

The  tail  of  a  well-bred  horse  should  be  set  high  on 
his  croup,  and  carried  well  away  from  the  body.  (See 
illustration  facing  page  10.)  The  hair  should  be  fine 
and  silky  and  straight.  The  dock  or  bony  part  of  the 
tail  should  be  firm,  and  when  picked  up  should  feel 
muscular  and  present  resistance  to  the  hold,  as  this 
denotes  vigor  and  strength  on  the  part  of  the  animal. 

A  stallion  should  never  be  purchased  except  for  stud 
purposes.  The  average  entire  horse  has  great  grit, 
courage,  endurance,  and  far  more  intelligence  than  a 
gelding,  but  having  something  of  a  tiger  in  him  he  is 
by  nature  a  fighting  animal  and  will  be  troublesome 
on  a  place,  and  usually  aggressive  and  dangerous  to 
ride.  Although  there  are  exceptions  to  the  rule,  very 
few  stallions  can  be  depended  on,  no  matter  how  gentle 
or  placid  they  may  appear  to  be. 

The  mare  has  certain  advantages  over  the  gelding 
inasmuch  as  she  has,  usually,  a  stronger  constitution, 
and  is  freer  from  disease.  From  experience,  I  have 
found  that  a  mare  when  brilliant  is  very  brilliant,  but 
she  seems  to  possess  the  feminine  prerogative  of  being 
very  variable  in  disposition,  and  many  people  object 
to  using  mares  on  this  account.  Likj  the  little  girl 
with  the  curl  on  her  forehead: 


"When  she  is  good,  she  is  very,  very  good; 
But  when  she  is  bad  she  is  horrid." 


26  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

For  the  novice,  take  it  all  in  all,  the  gelding  is,  per- 
haps, the  best. 

Aside  from  the  above,  and  beyond  all  considerations 
of  conformation,  a  horse  should  possess  that  indefin- 
able attribute  called  quality.  This,  in  a  horse,  is  what 
refinement  is  in  a  person.  Apart  from  the  added  gain 
in  looks,  the  question  of  breeding  is  so  closely  allied  to 
the  nervous  organization  of  the  animal,  that  a  well- 
bred  horse  is  not  only  more  sensitive  and  intelligent, 
and  more  responsive  to  the  slightest  impression  re- 
ceived from  the  rider,  but  is  also  more  courageous, 
and  has  more  endurance,  vigor,  and  speed  than  the 
low-bred  animal  of  twice  his  size. 

Good  action,  generally,  although  not  always,  accom- 
panies a  well-formed,  properly  proportioned  horse. 
He  should  move  with  decision,  evenness,  and  free- 
dom, and  there  should  be  no  sign  of  stiffness  or  jerki- 
ness  in  any  one  part.  He  should  have  a  free,  easy 
walk;  should  place  his  feet  so  that  his  shoes  are  worn 
down  evenly,  and  his  tread  should  be  light,  nimble, 
and  make  but  little  noise.  He  should  lift  his  feet 
sufficiently  to  clear  all  ordinary  obstacles  on  the 
ground. 

A  horse  with  a  good,  flat-footed  walk  is  usually  free 
in  his  other  paces;  whereas  an  animal  with  a  cramped 
walk  generally  has  a  poor  trot  as  well.  At  the  trot 
the  fore  legs  and  hind  legs  should  move  freely  in  unity; 
the  knees  flexed  easily,  and  the  hocks  flexed  well  un- 
der the  body.  The  foot  should  be  put  to  the  ground 
lightly,  and  with  precision,  and  should  neither  "point" 
stiffly  outward  nor  "dwell"  before  touching  the  ground. 

The  movement  should  commence  from  the  shoulder 
and  ought  not  to  be  confined  merely  to  the  knees. 
These,  although  not  excessively  flexed,  should  be  suffi- 


CONFORMATION  AND  ACTION  27 

ciently  bent  to  prevent  the  leg  from  swinging  stiffly- 
like  a  pendulum. 

Dealers  resort  to  many  different  devices  in  order  to 
produce  action  artificially,  such  as  shoeing  the  horse 
heavily,  etc.  The  prospective  purchaser  should  demand 
to  see  the  animal  walked,  jogged  slowly  and  quiet- 
ly with  a  loose  head.  He  should  also  stand  squarely 
in  front  of  the  animal  and  watch  him  as  he  trots  toward 
him  and  away  from  him.  From  the  front  he  will  be 
best  able  to  observe  if  a  horse  dishes  or  "  paddles," 
i.  e.,  throws  his  forefeet  out  to  the  side  instead  of 
placing  them  squarely  down  in  front  of  him.  From 
the  rear  the  purchaser  can  readily  see  the  action  of 
the  hind  legs.  These  should  pass  about  two  to  four 
inches  clear  of  each  other,  for  if  they  are  closer  than 
this,  the  horse  will  be  liable  to  " interfere"  or  "brush," 
and  if  further  apart  he  will  be  sure  to  straddle  in  his 
gait.  In  other  words,  viewed  from  the  front  the 
animal's  fore  legs  should,  at  a  trot,  eclipse  the  hind 
legs,  and  from  the  rear  the  hind  legs  obscure  the  fore. 

At  a  canter  or  gallop  the  horse  must  bring  his  hind 
legs  well  under  his  body,  and  his  feet  should  move 
low  to  the  ground.  The  reverse  of  this  is  called 
"climbing,"  and  a  horse  with  such  a  canter  is  usually 
deficient  in  speed. 

After  the  prospective  purchaser  has  seen  a  horse 
led  by  the  head  at  a  walk  and  trot,  and  then  ridden  at 
the  trot,  canter,  and  gallop,  he  should  mount  the  animal 
and  ride  him  about  to  ascertain  if  his  gaits  are  com- 
fortable, and  if  they  suit.  What  might  be  comforta- 
ble for  one  person  would  be  very  uncomfortable  for 
another. 

A  horse  with  a  poor  carriage  and  mediocre  gaits  can, 
undoubtedly,  be  gradually  improved  by  good  riding 


28  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

and  suppling  exercises,  but  unless  the  purchaser  is  an 
expert,  it  is  best  to  give  up  any  idea  of  "reforming"  a 
horse.  For  the  same  reason  horses  who  are  shown  with 
sharp  or  queer-looking  bits,  because  they  are  supposed 
"to  go  better  that  way,"  should  be  looked  upon  with 
suspicion  by  all  but  the  experienced. 

Horses  that  stumble,  balk,  pull,  pitch,  or  rear  should 
never  be  considered  unless  they  are  marvels  at  their 
particular  game  and  the  prospective  purchaser  is  an 
experienced  rider.  Playful  bucking  and  kicking,  as 
long  as  it  does  not  degenerate  into  real  pitching,  may 
be  overlooked  by  a  good  rider,  but  I  cannot  too  strongly 
advise  a  woman  to  reject  a  rearer  at  all  costs.  By 
rearer  I  do  not  mean  a  horse  who  occasionally  plunges, 
or  who  playfully  goes  up  a  few  inches  off  the  ground 
when  restrained  (although  this  habit,  if  not  properly 
handled,  can  easily  develop  into  rearing).  But  a  real 
rearer  should  not  be  taken,  even  as  a  gift,  by  any  right- 
minded  woman.  I  have  ridden  many  myself,  and 
thoroughly  disliked  the  job,  for  it  is  the  most  danger- 
ous vice  that  a  woman's  horse  can  possess.  She  has 
hardly  any  chance  to  get  away  if  he  falls  over  back- 
ward. 

When  the  purchaser  has  thoroughly  considered  the 
horse  and  finds  that  he  suits  as  to  conformation,  gaits, 
and  manners,  he  should  next  examine  the  animal  for 
blemishes  and  unsoundness.  Horses  with  curbs,  spa- 
vin, ring  or  side  bones,  those  touched  in  the  wind,  or 
about  which  there  is  the  slightest  rumor  that  they  may 
be  subject  to  "staggers,"  should  be  rejected.  The 
degree  of  suspicion  with  which  splints  should  be  looked 
upon  depends  entirely  upon  their  position  on  the  bones, 
and  the  stage  of  growth  which  they  have  acquired. 
It  would  be  very  risky  to  purchase  a  young  horse  with 


CONFORMATION  AND  ACTION  29 

splints  in  their  formative  period,  and  in  particular  if 
they  are  up  near  the  knee,  where  they  may  impinge 
upon  the  joint,  or  so  far  back  on  the  leg  that  they  may 
interfere  with  the  ligaments  and  tendons;  on  the  other 
hand,  an  older  horse  of  eight  or  nine,  possessing  an 
already-formed  splint,  which  is  low  on  the  leg,  might 
be  bought  with  comparative  safety. 

In  many  cases,  of  course,  the  word  of  a  veterinary 
will  have  to  be  taken  as  to  the  exact  degree  which  any 
defect  in  wind,  eyes,  or  limbs  will  affect  the  service- 
ability of  the  animal.  Although  it  is  well  for  any 
horseman  or  horsewoman  to  learn  the  more  common 
forms  of  unsoundness,  no  horse  should  ever  be  pur- 
chased without  being  passed  by  a  competent  veterinary. 
Even  if  buying  from  a  friend,  this  rule  should  always 
be  closely  observed,  for  by  so  doing  all  possibilities  of 
ill-feeling  over  the  deal  will  be  removed,  and  no  doubts 
need  arise  in  the  purchaser's  mind  as  to  the  friend's 
integrity  should  the  horse  go  unsound  at  some  later 
date. 


CHAPTER  III 
THE  MODEL  SADDLE  HORSE 

"Nothing  is  really  finished  until  it  is  beautiful." 

Soundness,  good  conformation,  level  gaits,  a  grace- 
ful carriage,  and  an  air  of  breeding,  as  well  as  many  of 
the  minor  points  which  we  have  been  discussing  in  the 
last  chapter,  are  essential  for  any  sort  of  horse;  be  he 
hack  or  hunter,  but  there  are  certain  special  qualifica- 
tions which  differentiate  the  hack  from  the  hunter;  cer- 
tain points  more  necessary  to  one  type  of  work  than 
to  the  other. 

For  example,  in  the  hunter  we  demand  strength, 
speed,  and  ability  to  perform  over  fences.  Appear- 
ance, with  the  possible  exception  of  the  "show"  hunter, 
is  but  a  secondary  consideration.  On  the  other  hand, 
in  the  hack*  comfortable  gaits,  manners,  training  and 
good  looks  are  the  prime  requisites,  while  in  the  show 
hack  even  gaits  and  manners  seem  entirely  and  com- 
pletely secondary  to  "  looks  "—and  "looks"  alone. 
This  is  particularly  true  in  this  country  where  the 
judges  at  horse  shows  seldom,  if  ever,  ride  the  exhibits 
to  test  their  paces. 

However,  in  the  model  hack  we  should  demand  that 
to  looks  be  added  good  gaits  and  good  manners.  Looks 
alone  are  not  sufficient,  for  if  the  animal  does  not  give' 
you  a  good  ride  he  fails  in  his  first  duty.  On  the  other 
hand,  mere  comfortable  gaits  in  a  horse  do  not  con- 
stitute him  a  hack.    If  that  were  the  case  many  hunt- 

*  The  word  "hack"  probably  originated  in  the  Andalusian  "jaca," 
pronounced  "haca,"  which  denoted  the  common  horse  of  the  country. 

30 


THE  MODEL  SADDLE  HORSE  31 

ers,  hundreds  of  polo  ponies,  or  in  fact  any  fairly  decent- 
looking  horse  that  allowed  itself  to  be  quietly  ridden 
along  the  road  and  had  nice  gaits  might  be  termed 
the  perfect  hack.  The  model  hack  is  a  creation,  per  se, 
and  he  must  possess  at  least  in  some  small  degree  all 
those  qualifications  which,  raised  to  the  "nth"  degree 
of  perfection  proclaim  the  show  hack.  If  this  self- 
same horse  can  hunt,  can  race,  or  do  light  harness 
work,  so  much  the  better,  but  above  all  and  beyond 
all  else  his  saddle  qualities  must  be  the  first  to  be  con- 
sidered, and  everything  else  be  subservient  to  them. 

We  will  in  this  ensuing  chapter  endeavor  to  por- 
tray a  horse  representing  the  highest  standard  of  per- 
fection for  a  hack.  In  general  outline  the  "  beau  ideal " 
of  a  hack  should  be  smoothly  rounded  with  a  fine  top 
line.  Angularities  of  any  kind,  while  permissible  in 
the  hunter,  are  undesirable  in  the  hack. 

He  must  be  more  or  less  "showy"  in  his  carriage, 
and  although  he  must,  under  no  circumstances,  carry 
a  high  "harnessy"  head,  his  neck,  which  must  be  long 
enough  to  allow  of  "plenty  of  rein,"  should  be  slightly 
and  gracefully  arched.  Above  all,  it  must  come  out 
of  his  body  properly  and  with  the  upper  outline  nicely 
convexed.  A  ewe  neck  on  a  hack  is  an  abomination. 
The  head  itself  should  be  small  and  well-shaped,  and 
the  ears  small  and  alert.  Lop  or  mule  ears  may  pass 
in  a  first-class  hunter,  but  they  are  not  permissible  in 
a  hack.  The  withers  should  be  fairly  high  and  sloping, 
and  above  all,  as  already  stated,  the  shoulders  must  be 
oblique  if  the  animal  is  to  possess  low,  even,  and 
smooth  gaits.  Straight  shoulders  produce  a  harnessy 
trot  and  stilty  canter.  The  body  should  be  well 
ribbed  up,  with  the  ribs  nicely  arched,  but  the  hack 
should  not  be  too  closely  "coupled"  or  he  will  not 


32  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

be  comfortable  to  ride.  His  back  must  be  straight, 
and  if  he  is  to  be  used  by  a  woman  it  should,  for  com- 
fort's sake,  err  on  the  longish  side. 

Although  it  is  not  as  necessary  for  a  hack  to  possess 
the  same  degree  of  bone  and  sinew  as  a  hunter,  never- 
theless, his  legs  must  by  all  means  be  able  to  stand 
the  wear  and  tear  of  ordinary  riding.  Fairly  elastic, 
sloping  pasterns  and  well-shaped  feet  are  of  great  im- 
portance, as  much  of  his  work  has  to  be  done  at  a 
'"amnier,  'ammer,  'ammer  on  the  'ard  'ighroad." 

The  hack's  crupper  line  should  be  straight  and 
smoothly  turned,  and  his  hips  even  and  nicely  rounded. 
Goose  rumps,  roached  backs,  and  ragged  hips  are  allow- 
able only  in  a  hunter.  He  should  have  a  straight  hind 
leg*  and  a  well-set-on  dock  that  is  carried  preferably 
well  away  from  the  body  in  a  graceful  arch.  This 
carriage  is  often  artificially  produced  by  cutting  some 
muscles  in  the  dock.  If  well  done  by  an  experienced 
surgeon  it  often  proves  satisfactory,  but  there  is  always 
a  certain  risk  attending  it  that  the  horse's  appearance 
will  be  ruined  by  a  crooked  tail  carriage.  Therefore, 
unless  the  horse  is  very  under-bred,  or  actually  hugs 
his  dock  to  his  body,  I  would  not  advise  tampering 
with  it. 

The  proper  height  for  the  model  hack  that  is  to  be 
ridden  by  the  average  man  or  women  is  from  15  hands 
to  15.3.  Anything  under  this  size  would  be  consid- 
ered a  pony,  but  if  a  horse  is  light,  breedy,  and  springy 
in  gait,  anything  up  to  16  hands  is  permissible.  Of 
course  the  height  of  the  horse  must  at  all  times  depend 
largely  on  the  size  of  the  rider.    A  woman  with  what 

*  It  must  not  be  forgotten,  however,  that  an  extremely  straight  hind 
leg  is  not  very  conducive  to  much  hock  action,  and  is,  therefore,  more 
to  be  desired  in  a  hunter  than  in  a  hack. 


From  a  photograph  by  Rouch. 

F.  Vivian  Gooch,  Esq.,  on  Turquoise. 


THE  MODEL  SADDLE  HORSE  33 

might  be  politely  termed  a  "  comfortable  "  figure  should 
ride  either  a  stocky  cob  of  15.2,  or  a  big  rangy  horse  of 
16.1,  for  nothing  looks  so  foolish  as  a  heavy  woman 
perched  on  a  thin,  weedy  little  animal,  who  appears 
as  if  he  were  going  to  break  in  the  middle  under  his  load. 
On  the  other  hand,  a  little  " pocket  Venus"  woman 
would  look  like  a  tomtit  on  a  rail  if  mounted  on  any- 
thing much  over  15.2  or  15.3. 

Color  is  largely  a  matter  of  personal  preference,  but 
for  saddle  work,  pure  and  simple,  we  usually  find  that 
bays,  chestnuts,  and  sorrels  are  the  best.  Blacks  "clip 
out"  poorly,  and  are,  therefore,  not  desirable,  and 
grays  are  not  in  favor  owing  to  the  fact  that  the  hairs 
come  off  on  clothes  and  rugs.  In  the  show  ring  in 
ladies'  classes,  other  things  being  equal,  a  gray  will 
not  be  as  favorably  looked  upon  as  a  horse  of  a  darker 
color.  Of  course,  there  are  many  gray  show  cham- 
pions, past  and  present,  who  do  not  seem  to  have  been 
handicapped  by  their  color,  but  this  is  generally  owing 
to  the  fact  that  they  have  outclassed  the  other  horses 
in  every  other  regard.  Piebalds,  skewbalds,  duns, 
and  roans  are  generally  found  in  under-bred  horses, 
and  are  not  accepted  saddle  colors;  they  rarely  stand 
a  chance  in  the  show  ring,  although,  with  the  excep- 
tion of  the  piebald,  they  often  make  smart-looking 
country  hacks.  To  my  mind  the  piebald  has  no  pos- 
sible use  except  for  the  circus  ring. 

In  all  solid  colors  the  deeper  and  more  decided  the 
shade  the  better,  and  in  all  cases  the  richness  and 
depth  of  the  color  should  extend  even  to  the  legs  and 
tail.  For  the  depth  of  the  pigment  is  dependent  on 
the  heat  and  circulation  of  the  body,  and  washy  ex- 
tremities are  apt  to  denote  a  weak  constitution.  In 
other  cases,  light,  washy-looking  hairs  on  the  legs  and 


34  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

tail  of  an  otherwise  breedy  horse  signify  common  par- 
entage or  draft  blood. 

White  ankles  and  white  feet  are,  as  a  rule,  more 
delicate  and  liable  to  disease  than  dark  ones,  a  fact 
which  may  have  given  rise  to  the  foolish  old  jingle: 
"Four  white  feet  and  a  white  nose;  cut  off  his  head 
and  give  him  to  the  crows,"  etc.  Nevertheless,  in 
horses  of  solid  color,  white  ankles,  one  or  two  white 
stockings,  and  a  snip  or  streak  on  the  animal's  face 
give  a  snappy  appearance.  Such  markings  must  not, 
however,  be  too  conspicuous,  nor  should  the  white 
stockings  proceed  at  any  point  above  the  hock,  for 
this  is  considered  too  flashy  and  will  count  against  a 
horse  in  the  show  ring. 

A  hack  should  have  a  good,  flat-footed  walk,  capable 
of  covering  four  miles  an  hour,  and  a  lady's  hack, 
above  all,  never  should  " jiggle."  Few  men  realize 
how  tiring  and  annoying  this  habit  is  to  a  woman. 
Stumbling  (unless  found  to  be  the  result  of  poor 
shoeing  rather  than  defective  conformation)  may  pos- 
sibly be  pardoned  in  the  hunter  but  never  tolerated 
in  a  hack;  even  though  the  horse  may  have  a  good- 
enough  shoulder  to  save  himself  from  falling  when  he 
stumbles,  he  will,  nevertheless,  be  an  unpleasant 
mount. 

The  trot  should  be  quick  and  nimble,  not  the  ex- 
tended flying  gait  suited  to  the  trotting  track,  but  one 
in  which  the  horse's  hocks  are  well  under  him  and  his 
feet  lifted  gracefully  and  lightly.  The  motion  of  the 
fore  legs  should  come  chiefly  from  the  shoulder,  and 
the  knees  should  be  lightly,  but  not  tightly,  flexed. 

High  action,  particularly  if  the  knees  are  tightly 
flexed,  is  not  conducive  to  comfort  in  the  saddle;  is 
harnessy  in  appearance,  and  a  horse  possessing  it  not 


THE  MODEL  SADDLE  HORSE  35 

only  pounds  his  feet  on  the  ground  but  becomes 
fatigued  very  quickly,  due  to  the  unnecessary  expendi- 
ture of  energy. 

Many  of  our  present-day  show  horses  are  "  unable 
to  get  out  of  their  own  way"  and  trot  up  and  down 
almost  in  the  same  place,  a  fault  which  should  never 
be  tolerated.  The  other  extreme:  excessively  low 
action,  is  equally  bad,  for  a  good  hack  should  not 
"point,"  "dwell,"  nor  move  stiffly  with  such  low, 
straight-kneed  action  as  to  be  what  is  termed  a  "daisy 
cutter." 

The  hock  action  is  also  of  great  importance.  He 
should  under  no  circumstances  drag  his  hocks,  but 
should  use  them  with  alacrity  and  snap.  A  woman's 
horse  in  particular  should  have  sufficient  hock  action 
to  assist  her  rising  easily.  Many  a  hack  that  is  quite 
comfortable  for  a  man,  in  this  regard,  is  deficient  from 
a  woman's  point  of  view. 

The  horse  in  illustration  facing  page  36  shows  a 
hack  moving  with  quite  sufficient  knee  and  hock  ac- 
tion to  win  in  any  show  ring. 

To  all  real  horsemen  or  horsewomen  the  canter  is 
the  gait  par  excellence  of  the  ideal  hack.  It  should  be 
the  poetry  of  motion — the  slower  the  better,  and  low 
to  the  ground.  A  well-broken  hack  should  be  able  to 
"canter  all  day  in  the  shade  of  an  old  apple-tree." 
Nor  do  I  mean  by  a  slow  canter  an  ambling,  lazy  sort 
of  lope,  but  rather  the  cultivated  gait  of  the  horse 
who  is  willing  to  curb  his  ambition,  and,  at  the  demand 
of  his  master,  puts  all  his  energy  into  a  five-mile-an- 
hour  gait. 

The  canter  is  presumed  by  most  people  to  be  merely 
a  slow  gallop,  but,  mechanically  speaking,  it  has  no  re- 
lation to  the  gallop.    A  horse  going  a  slow  twelve-mile- 


36  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

an-hour  gallop  is  not  cantering.  The  canter  proper 
is  about  a  five  or  six  mile  an  hour  gait,  and  is  produced 
by  training  the  individual  horse  to  rein  back  from 
the  three-beat  gallop. 

"Manners  Makyth  Man,"  the  motto  of  Winchester 
College,  England,  is  as  applicable  to  horses  as  it  is  to 
men.     Manners  most  certainly  do  "make"  the  horse! 

The  perfect  hack  should  be  broken  to  a  double 
bridle,  and  should  go  well  "up  into"  it — that  is,  he 
should  feel  of  and  play  with  the  bit  without  pulling. 
A  horse  that  pulls,  bores  or  sticks  his  nose  out,  is  not 
worth  anything  as  a  hack.  His  mouth,  on  the  con- 
trary, should  be  as  light  as  possible  and  responsive 
to  the  gentlest  touch.  The  moment  you  pick  up  the 
reins  he  should  "give  you  his  head"  and  keep  it  in 
position  throughout  the  ride.  He  should,  of  course, 
be  bridle-wise,  i.e.,  guided  by  the  pressure  of  the  reins 
on  the  neck,  and  should  also  be  broken  to  the  aids — 
the  leg,  the  spur,  and  the  whip — so  that  at  a  touch  he 
can  readily  be  brought  to  hand  and  collected.  A  well- 
broken  hack  should,  at  a  moment's  notice,  be  able  to 
break  directly  from  a  walk,  or  even  from  a  standstill, 
into  this  smooth  canter,  leading  on  either  leg  desired. 
But  he  should  never  break  without  being  given  the 
signal.  The  ability  to  lead  with  either  leg  and  at  a 
light  touch  to  change  legs  on  a  figure  eight,  or  even 
on  a  straight  line,  should  be  a  part  of  every  hack's 
education.  It  is  an  additional  advantage  if  he  has 
been  taught  to  handle  his  feet  properly  and  can  "tra- 
verse" (move  sidewise  at  a  walk)  at  least  two  or  three 
steps  without  effort. 

He  should  be  willing  to  stand  quietly  with  the  reins 
loose  on  his  neck  while  being  mounted.  (This  is  par- 
ticularly desirable  in  a  lady's  horse.)     He  must  be 


From  a  photograph  by  Haas. 

Ben  Dale. 
By  Ellisdale  out  of  Fairy  Bird.     Property  of  H.  C.  Huffer,  Esq. 


THE  MODEL  SADDLE  HORSE  37 

willing,  in  company  or  alone,  to  back;  to  change  his 
gaits  from  walk  to  trot  or  canter  without  flurry  or 
mixing  himself.  In  fact,  although  full  of  fire  and 
gaiety,  he  must  be  so  trained  that  all  his  desires  are 
subservient  to  the  rider's  wants  and  comforts. 

And  yet,  perfectly  trained  though  he  may  be,  if  he 
is  well-bred  and  high-strung,  you  must  expect  him 
occasionally  to  play  and  frisk.  Nor  should  playful 
romping,  an  occasional  squeal  or  buck  when  coming 
out  of  the  stable  on  a  frosty  morning,  or  upon  hearing 
some  startling  sound,  be  charged  against  him,  even 
in  the  show  ring.  After  all,  what  we  want  is  not  a 
"machine,"  but  a  living,  sentient  animal,  trained  to 
respect  our  wishes. 

A  horse  as  well  made  and  trained  as  I  have  above 
depicted  will  undoubtedly  be  hard  to  find  anywhere 
in  America,  for  the  simple  reason  that  the  average 
American  knows  little,  and  cares  less,  about  what 
really  constitutes  a  well-broken  saddle  horse,  and 
never  troubles  himself  about  "bitting"  or  "making" 
an  animal. 

There  are,  of  course,  exceptions  to  every  rule,  and 
men  like  Emile  Anthony,  William  McGibbon,  J.  H. 
Collins,  Robert  Moreland,  Walter  Baker,  Chas.  Butler, 
and  the  late  Chas.  Railey  and  Jimmy  Schweiger,*  to 
say  nothing  of  Mrs.  John  Gerken  and  Miss  Belle  Beach, 
have  always  appreciated  a  well-broken  animal,  and 
know  how  to  "make"  them  as  well  as  any  foreigner. 
But  these  men  are  in  the  minority,  and  the  horses  they 
have  broken  soon  lose  all  they  have  learned  by  the 
slovenly  riding  of  their  customers. 

The    average    American    show    horse,    considered 

*  Not  to  mention  such  expert  horsemen  of  foreign  birth  as  Ernest 
Fownes,  Geo.  von  Kalowski. 


38  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

broken,  according  to  our  idea,  would  to  men  like 
Vivian  Gooch,  of  England,  or  Colonel  Feline,  of  France, 
seem  merely  a  green  one.  Comparisons  may  be  in- 
vidious, but  they  are  often  interesting  as  well  as  in- 
structive, and  surely  may  be  pardoned  if  they  point 
a  moral.  For  example,  I  have,  when  in  England, 
ridden  horses  schooled  by  Mr.  Gooch,  which  I  consid- 
ered so  well  broken  that  I  marvelled  at  them,  and  yet 
which  he  smilingly  referred  to  as  not  yet  being  half 
finished  and  requiring  many  more  months  of  tuition 
before  being  ready  to  show.  Then,  again,  when  I 
first  went  over  to  ride  at  Olympia  for  the  late  Mr. 
Walter  Winans,  I  telephoned  Mr.  Gooch,  who  was 
training  his  horses,  informing  him  of  my  arrival,  and 
asking  when  I  might  go  out  to  Windsor  to  try  the 
horses  prior  to  the  show.  I  was  told,  much  to  my 
surprise,  that  this  was  quite  unnecessary,  and  that  all 
I  need  do  was  to  appear  at  Olympia  fifteen  minutes 
before  my  class  was  to  be  called.  In  other  words,  the 
horses  I  was  expected  to  ride  were  so  perfectly  broken 
that  they  needed  no  preliminary  schooling,  and  when  I 
arrived  at  Olympia  I  found  that  my  horse,  "Turquoise" 
(see  illustration  facing  page  32),  went  as  superbly  as  if  I 
had  ridden  him  all  my  life.  He  was  so  perfectly  broken 
that  all  he  needed  in  order  to  do  his  best  was  merely 
to  have  his  rider  on  his  back!  He  walked,  trotted, 
cantered,  held  his  head  in  its  proper  place,  changed 
leads  at  a  touch,  and  even  did  the  Spanish  Walk  out 
of  the  ring  when  he  won  his  blue.  Whereas,  over  here, 
when  I  am  asked  to  show  a  so-called  show  horse,  I 
am  obliged  to  give  it  hours  of  work  prior  to  the  show, 
endeavoring  to  teach  it  the  rudiments  of  changing 
leads  or  some  other  simple  little  thing,  which  to  a 
really  broken  horse  should  be  second  nature.     Such 


THE  MODEL   SADDLE   HORSE  39 

horses  win  in  the  ring  only  because  the  rider  happens 
to  be  an  old  hand  at  the  game  and  can  camouflage 
their  faults  from  the  judges,  but  in  no  sense  of  the 
word  are  they  really  broken. 

In  referring  to  my  experience  in  England,  I  do  not 
for  a  moment  wish  to  imply  that  riding  a  horse  prior 
to  a  show  is  unnecessary.  On  the  contrary,  even  in 
this  case  I  think  that  "Turquoise"  would  have  gone 
even  better,  if  that  were  possible,  had  he  and  I  been 
acquainted  longer.  But  what  I  do  want  to  emphasize 
is  that  if  the  horse  is  really  "made,"  any  riding  prior 
to  a  show  is  merely  supposed  to  be  an  introduction  of 
horse  and  rider  and  not  a  gruelling  lesson  in  the  rudi- 
ments of  saddle  work. 

Horses,  broken  as  well  as  "Turquoise,"  are,  of  course, 
rare  in  any  country,  but  they  are  more  apt  to  be  found 
in  England  than  here,  and  still  more  apt  to  be  found 
in  France.  The  Englishman,  on  the  whole,  is  a  hunt- 
ing and  racing  man,  and  pays  less  attention  to  the 
making  of  so-called  "school"  horses  than  the  French 
officer  who  has  reduced  it  to  a  science.  For  although 
the  French  civilians,  on  the  whole,  are  not  horsemen, 
the  militaire  of  France  are  responsible  for  some  of  the 
most  highly  finished  horses  in  the  world.  Even  F. 
Vivian  Gooch,  who  holds  the  palm  among  English 
horsemen  in  the  art  of  making  a  saddle  horse,  will 
admit,  I  am  sure,  that  he  owes  many  of  his  methods  to 
the  French;  and  I  think  that  any  one  who  has  ever 
seen  an  exhibition  of  horsemanship  by  the  picked 
officers  of  Saumur  will  agree  that  it  is  a  sight  long  to 
be  remembered  and  difficult,  if  not  impossible,  to 
equal  anywhere. 

Not  all  of  us  can  hope  to  possess  a  horse  broken  by 
a  Saumur  officer,  a  Colonel  Feline,  or  a  Mr.  Gooch, 


40  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

but  every  one  of  us  can  learn  from  such  an  exhibition 
what  really  constitutes  a  well-broken  animal  and,  in 
training  our  American  saddle  horses,  imitate  them  as 
much  as  possible. 


CHAPTER  IV 

THE  THOROUGHBRED   VERSUS    THE 
KENTUCKY  SADDLE  HORSE* 

"Pouter,  tumbler  and  fantail  are  from  the  same  source; 
The  racer  and  hack  may  be  traced  to  one  horse; 
So  men  were  developed  from  monkeys,  of  course, 
Which  nobody  can  deny." 

— Lord  Charles  Neaves. 

Having  determined  what  constitutes  the  "model" 
hack,  our  next  question  is  to  decide  what  breed  of 
horse  is  most  likely  to  supply  us  with  what  we  want; 
for  the  breeding  of  an  animal  tells  us,  more  than  any 
physical  feature,  what  he  will  be  like,  what  he  will 
do,  and  what  he  is  capable  of.  The  first  question  of 
any  successful  horse  breeder  and  buyer  is  "How  is  he 
bred?"  and  according  to  the  answer  the  animal's 
value  is  largely  measured. 

Scientists  are  not  yet  quite  agreed  among  them- 

*  The  word  "thoroughbred"  is  so  often  erroneously  used  that  to 
avoid  any  ambiguity  arising  from  the  use  of  the  word  in  the  following 
chapter  I  think  it  wise  to  state  quite  clearly  the  authorized  meanings 
of  the  following  terms: 

Thoroughbred.  The  term  applies  only  to  the  breed  of  "running" 
horses  eligible  to  registration  in  the  stud-books  of  America,  England, 
or  affiliated  stud-books  for  thoroughbreds  in  other  countries.  A  horse 
is  eligible  for  such  registration  only  if  he  can  trace  his  pedigree  in  all 
his  lines  to  animals  recorded  in  such  stud-books.  There  is  a  prevalent 
misapprehension  that  a  certain  number  of  thoroughbred  "top  crosses" 
entitle  an  animal  to  such  registration. 

It  is  readily  seen  that  there  is  no  such  thing  as  a  "thoroughbred 
Kentucky  horse."  This  is  a  misnomer.  Don't  say  "thoroughbred" 
unless  you  mean  it. 

A  horse  that  is  very  nearly  thoroughbred  (or  one  with  a  slight  stain 
on  his  pedigree  which  prevents  his  being  eligible  for  registration  in 
the  stud-book)  is  designated  in  England  as  a  "blood  horse." 

Pure-Bred.  The  term  pure-bred  is  what  many  people  mean  when 
they  say  "thoroughbred."    A  pure-bred  animal  is  one  of  pure  breed- 

41 


42  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

selves  as  to  the  exact  proportions  that  the  factors  of 
heredity  and  environment  play  in  the  human  character, 
for  in  dealing  with  humans  things  are  more  or  less 
complicated  by  the  third  factor  of  the  human  will, 
to  which  both  heredity  and  environment  are  subser- 
vient. But  in  the  animal  world  the  will  plays  a  minor 
part,  and  environment  is  almost  as  negligible  an 
influence.  The  determining  factor  is  undoubtedly 
heredity. 

Coming  to  the  question  of  breeds  among  horses,  we 
find  that  in  the  American  saddle  world  there  is  no 
more  hotly  contested  argument  than  the  one  as  to 
which  breed — or  more  broadly  construed — which  type 
of  horse  is  best  suited  for  saddle  work  and  best  ful- 
fils the  aforementioned  requirements  of  conformation, 
gaits,  and  manners. 

The  Arab,  the  Morgan,  even  the  Standard  bred,  all 
have  their  votaries,  but  the  main  controversy  consists 
between  the  advocates  of  the  thoroughbred  type  of 
horse  and  the  Kentucky  bred.  I  personally  believe 
that  the  thoroughbred  is  the  beau  ideal  of  what  a 
saddle  horse  should  be.     But  in  believing  this  I  hope 

ing,  representing  a  recognized  type,  both  of  whose  parents  were  pure- 
bred animals  of  the  same  breed.  For  example,  the  Kentucky  horse, 
the  hackney,  and  the  Arab,  all  (when  unadulterated  with  another 
cross  or  breed)  are  pure  breds.  To  be  considered  pure-bred  live  stock 
must,  of  course,  be  registered,  or,  in  the  absence  of  such  registration, 
be  eligible  for  such  registration  in  the  respective  stud-books  of  the 
breed.  In  this  sense  of  the  word  a  "thoroughbred"  is  also  a  pure- 
bred, but  there  is  no  need  in  his  case  to  apply  the  word,  for,  whereas 
there  are  many  hackneys  or  Kentucky  horses  who  are  not  sufficiently 
pure-bred  to  be  eligible  to  their  stud-books,  no  thoroughbred  is  a 
thoroughbred  unless  he  is  eligible.  In  no  case  can  one  ever  reverse  the 
statement  and  say  that  since  a  thoroughbred  is  a  pure-bred,  a  pure- 
bred is  a  thoroughbred.     The  rule  does  not  work  both  ways. 

Standard  Bred.  This  term  refers  to  a  distinct  breed  of  pure-bred 
American  light-harness  horses  (both  trotters  and  pacers),  who  are  eligi- 
ble to  American  Trotting  Registry. 


THOROUGHBRED  VS.  KENTUCKY  HORSE  43 

that  I  am  not  so  hidebound  by  prejudice  as  to  be 
unwilling  to  admit  that  each  and  every  breed  has  its 
good  points  as  well  as  its  bad,  and  that  there  are  many 
splendid  hacks  of  all  breeds.  A  good  hack  is  a  good 
hack  no  matter  how  he  is  bred,  and  a  good  Kentucky- 
bred  saddler  is  preferable  to  a  poor  thoroughbred.  In 
order  to  come  to  any  fair  conclusion,  unbiassed  by  per- 
sonal feeling,  one  must  go  into  the  matter  most  care- 
fully and  never  forget  that  "  intolerance  is  but  another 
name  for  ignorance." 

It  is  deplorable  as  well  as  ridiculous  that  in  some 
circles  horsemen  are  so  intolerant  of  each  other's  pet 
hobbies  and  favorite  types  that  the  "racing"  enthu- 
siast will  sneer  at  the  "trotting"  devotee,  and  the 
"hunting"  man  think  the  "school"  rider  rather  an 
idiot.  In  the  saddle  horse  world  the  lover  of  the 
thoroughbred  is  too  apt,  without  giving  any  real 
thought  to  the  matter,  to  disregard  the  Kentucky 
horse's  claims  to  beauty  and  usefulness,  and  vice 
versa.  Let  us,  therefore,  in  comparing  the  various 
breeds  and  types  endeavor  to  divest  ourselves  of  all 
prejudice,  and  remember  that  in  judging  horses  as  in 
judging  men  and  events  there  is  no  quicker  way  to 
acquire  true  wisdom  than  learning  to  look  at  things 
from  another's  point  of  view. 

The  merits  and  demerits  of  the  Standard  bred  and 
Arab  are  as  follows: 

The  Standard  Bred.  The  Standard-bred  horse, 
pure  and  simple,  without  any  intermixture  of  outside 
blood,  as  a  rule  has  too  harsh  and  violent  a  trot  ever 
to  make  a  good  saddle  horse.*    His  canter,  at  which 

*  There  are,  of  course,  exceptions  to  every  rule,  and  out  of  hundreds 
of  trotters  Mr.  C.  K.  G.  Billings  has  been  able  to  pick  a  number  who 
give  you  an  excellent  ride  at  the  trot. 


44  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

gait  he  is  most  loath  to  travel,  is  high  and  pounding, 
owing  undoubtedly  to  the  fact  that  he  has  a  somewhat 
different  hock  and  far  longer  femur  and  tibia  than 
other  horses.  These,  although  they  enable  him  to 
reach  farther  backward  in  the  act  of  propulsion  in 
the  trot,  also  necessitate  his  rotating  his  whole  leg 
outward  in  order  to  bring  it  well  under  him. 

The  Arab.  The  Arab,  to  whom  we  owe  a  great 
debt  as  the  founder  of  the  thoroughbred  family,  has 
undoubtedly  great  intelligence  and  tremendous  stamina. 
From  earliest  time  he  has  been  raised  with  one  idea — 
to  carry  his  master  through  all  vicissitudes  of  the  ele- 
ments, and  this  has  produced  endurance,  courage,  and 
hardiness,  while  constant  companionship  with  man  has 
resulted  in  extraordinary  sagacity  and  docility.  But 
in  spite  of  these  excellent  qualities  of  disposition,  his 
conformation,  gaits,  and  speed  leave  much  to  be  de- 
sired. He  is  usually  pictured  by  artists  as  being  built 
along  magnificent  lines,  with  a  graceful,  curved  neck. 
With  few  exceptions,  however,  the  average  Arab  is 
not  nearly  as  beautiful  or  so  gracefully  turned  as  pic- 
tures have  led  us  to  imagine.  His  neck  is  generally 
short,  and  his  head  carried  high  with  his  nose  stuck 
out  in  front.  His  shoulders  are  often  good,  but  his 
withers  are  too  low,  broad,  and  rounded  to  suit  our 
ideas  of  saddle  conformation.  Moreover,  the  chief 
objection  to  the  use  of  the  Arab  for  general  saddle 
work  is  his  size.  The  caste  Arab  stands  only  14.1 
hands.  He  is  undoubtedly  able  to  carry  very  heavy 
loads,  as  has  been  demonstrated  time  and  time  again, 
but  few  full-grown  men  or  women  would  look  well  on 
a  horse  barely  above  pony  size.  Under  the  Orient's 
sunny  skies  a  man  gloriously  arrayed  in  Bedouin's 
clothes,  mounted  on  an  Arab,  may  please  the  eye,  but 


THOROUGHBRED  VS.  KENTUCKY  HORSE  45 

the  effect  is  less  pleasing  when  we  bestride  the  Arab, 
clad  in  more  modern,  and  less  colorful,  attire. 

Lieutenant-Colonel  Theodore  A.  Dodge,  who  has 
travelled  the  world  over  and  seen  horses  in  all  coun- 
tries, says  in  " Riders  in  Many  Lands"  in  regard  to 
the  Arab's  gaits:  "He  has  but  two  which  may  be 
called  perfect — the  walk  and  the  gallop.  His  flat- 
footed  walk  is  undeniably  good.  His  amble  or  rack 
is  good,  but  neither  rapid  nor  even  and  reliable  in 
individuals.  He  has  rarely  a  canter  proper;  he  always 
gallops." 

On  the  whole,  the  Arab  of  to-day  is  merely  what 
he  was  four  or  five  centuries  ago.  He  has  remained 
stationary,  while  his  descendant,  the  thoroughbred, 
has  advanced  in  conformation,  speed,  and  stature,  so 
that  one  would  scarcely  believe  that  they  were  of  the 
same  ancestry.  In  fact,  to  breed  to  an  Arab  is  con- 
sidered by  some  English  and  American  breeders  to  be 
"breeding  back"  and  throwing  away  all  that  has  been 
gained  by  the  centuries.  In  any  case,  the  breeding 
of  pure-bred  Arabs  in  America  is  not  likely  ever  to 
become  very  extensive,  owing  to  the  fact  that  it  is 
well-nigh  next  to  impossible  to  obtain  pure  Arab 
mares  from  their  source,  and  that  the  inherent  lack  of 
fertility  in  the  breed  when  imported  makes  the  breed- 
ing of  Arabs  over  here  more  or  less  of  an  economic 
failure.  Though  Arabs  have  been  imported  and  bred 
in  America  since  1856,  there  are,  at  the  time  this 
volume  goes  to  press,  only  283  living  registered  Ara- 
bians in  this  country.* 

We  now  come  to  the  main  body  of  the  controversy, 

*  Three  hundred  and  sixty-three  Arabians  are  registered,  but  of  this 
number  eighty  are  known  to  be  dead.  The  1920  foals  have  not  been 
registered  as  yet. 


46  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

i.  e.,  as  to  whether  the  thoroughbred  type  or  the 
Kentucky  type  of  horse  is  best  suited  for  saddle  work. 
We  use  this  word  type  advisedly,  inasmuch  as  in  our 
discussion  we  mean  to  include  the  horses  in  which 
thoroughbred  blood,  or  Kentucky  blood,  predominates, 
even  though  they  may  not  be  eligible  for  their  re- 
spective stud-books.  In  comparing  the  conformation 
of  the  two  types  we  find,  first,  that  the  Kentucky 
saddler  has  a  comparatively  short  neck,  which  rises 
abruptly  and  sharply  at  the  withers.  He  carries  a 
high,  peacocky  head.  According  to  the  Kentucky 
standard,  "the  neck  is  lifted  in  a  graceful  arch  so  that 
the  head  is  about  as  high  as  that  of  the  rider's."  His 
back  is  short,  he  is  extremely  closely  coupled  and  in- 
clined to  be  leggy,  while  his  shoulders  are  usually 
straight  instead  of  oblique.  In  contrast  to  this  the 
thoroughbred  type  of  horse  has  a  long,  fine  neck, 
which  can  be  carried  in  just  as  graceful  a  style  as  that 
of  the  Kentucky  horse,  but  which  slopes  gradually 
from  the  shoulders,  enabling  him  to  carry  a  moder- 
ately low  head.  His  back  is  longer,  and  although 
there  are  many  thoroughbreds  racing  to-day  who 
possess  straight  shoulders,  it  is  easier  on  an  average 
to  find  the  oblique  shoulder  suitable  for  saddle  work 
among  thoroughbreds  than  among  Kentucky  horses. 

If  we  regard  this  difference  of  conformation  purely 
and  simply  from  the  standpoint  of  looks,  we  will,  I 
am  sure,  readily  concede  that,  although  the  Kentucky 
saddler,  with  flowing  mane  and  tail,  is  artistically  a 
pretty  picture,  from  a  " riding"  point  of  view  he  re- 
sembles too  closely  the  conformation  of  the  harness 
horse.  Glance,  for  example,  at  the  three  pictures  in 
this  chapter  of  a  first-class  hackney,  Kentucky  saddler, 
and  thoroughbred. 


William  II.  Moore's 

hackney  mare,  Lady 

Seaton. 


Kentucky-bred  marc. 
Bohemian  Actress. 

By  Bohemian  Ring  out 
of  American  I. adv. 


Harvey  S.  Ladew's 

thoroughbred  mare, 

Leading  Lady. 

By  Star  Ruby  out  of 
Lady  Lindsey. 


THOROUGHBRED  VS.  KENTUCKY  HORSE  47 

On  the  Kentucky  horse  the  rider  has  no  length  of 
rein  in  front  of  him;  he  is,  owing  to  the  straight  shoulder 
and  general  form  of  the  horse,  perched  away  in  front 
of  the  centre  of  gravity,  very  much  in  the  way  that 
he  would  be  seated  if  riding  a  hackney.  As  we  have 
already  seen  in  the  last  chapter,  the  straight  shoulder 
is  far  less  apt  to  produce  smooth  and  easy  gaits  than 
the  oblique  shoulder.  In  fact,  the  gaits  of  the  Ken- 
tucky horse  would,  owing  to  this  formation,  be  almost 
as  hard  and  stilty  as  the  harness  horse  were  they  not 
softened  and  rendered  more  springy  by  his  extremely 
long  and  sloping  pasterns,  which  undoubtedly  lessen 
the  concussion  of  his  trot.  It  is,  however,  impossible 
to  discuss  the  moot  question  as  to  whether  the  Ken- 
tucky or  the  thoroughbred  type  of  horse  has  the 
most  comfortable  gaits  without  first  differentiating 
between  the  five-gailed  and  the  three-gaited  Kentucky 
saddler. 

Originally  the  Kentucky  horse  was  bred  chiefly  as 
a  five-gaited  animal.  Life  on  the  Southern  plantation 
demanded  that  a  man  be  in  the  saddle  all  day  and 
every  day,  and  an  animal  with  easy,  comfortable,  and 
swift  gaits  was  more  than  merely  a  luxury;  he  was  an 
economic  necessity.  Without  going  too  deeply  into 
the  history  of  the  breed,  suffice  it  to  say  that  in  1850 
by  the  crossing  of  thoroughbred  stallions  and  pacing 
mares  (who  in  their  turn  are  also  descended  from  the 
thoroughbred)  the  Kentucky-bred  saddler  originated. 
The  "pace,"  pure  and  simple,  was  artificially  turned 
into  the  running  walk  and  the  rack  or  single-foot. 
The  rack  is  known  as  the  single-foot  for  the  reason  that 
in  this  gait  no  two  feet  strike  the  ground  at  the  same 
time,  and  as  the  majority  of  horses  do  not  like  to 
travel'  at  this  gait  it  is  one  that  is  difficult  to  teach. 


48  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

In  a  small  percentage  of  five-gaited  horses  the  running 
walk  is  substituted  by  the  slow  pace,  or  fox-trot. 

There  is  no  denying  that  at  these  artificial  gaits  the 
Kentucky  horse  is  extremely  easy  to  ride,  and  we  have 
no  quarrel  with  the  old-fashioned  Southerner  who 
claims  for  his  horse  the  easiest  paces  in  all  the  world. 
In  the  rack,  for  example,  there  is  scarcely  any  motion 
of  the  rider's  body,  and  one  could  almost  ride  to  a 
dinner  or  a  dance  in  one's  evening  clothes,  without 
danger  of  being  in  the  least  rumpled  up  or  overheated. 
One  can  then  scarcely  blame  the  Southerner  for  at  one 
time  rather  pitying  Englishmen  for  indulging  in  so 
uncomfortable  a  gait  as  a  trot.* 

These  comfortable  artificial  gaits,  however,  are  ex- 
tremely difficult  to  keep  pure  and  free  from  mixing,  and 
unless  the  horse  is  always  ridden  by  an  expert — and 
sometimes  even  then — they  degenerate  into  a  horrible 
hodgepodge  of  mixed  gaits.  Even  when  performed  at 
its  best,  I  do  not  think  that  the  rack  or  running  walk 
can  be  considered  anything  but  a  rather  ugly  and  un- 
gainly gait  to  look  at.  Nevertheless,  there  is  no  doubt 
that,  as  a  five-gaited  animal,  the  Kentucky  horse  is 
very  popular  in  some  sections  of  the  country,  as  is 
readily  evidenced  by  the  huge  prices  paid  for  good 
specimens  of  the  kind,  as  well  as  by  the  enormous 
crowds  he  draws  at  exhibitions  in  the  South,  where  he 
competes  for  colossal  stakes.  It  would,  therefore,  be 
extremely  narrow-minded  to  condemn  flat-footedly  a 
horse  so  popular  in  the  South  because  he  does  not 

*  At  one  time  the  trot  was  called  "Le  trot  Anglais,"  inasmuch  as 
the  Continental,  the  Arab,  as  well  as  all  horsemen  of  the  Orient  always 
either  walked  or  galloped;  the  Southerner  racked  or  single-footed;  the 
Westerner  loped  on  his  cow-pony,  and  it  was  only  the  English,  who 
to-day  rarely  ride  at  any  other  gait  but  a  canter,  who  trotted  and 
originated  "rising"  to  the  trot  as  we  know  that  gait  to-day. 


THOROUGHBRED  VS.  KENTUCKY  HORSE  49 

happen  to  conform  to  our  idea  of  what  a  saddle  horse 
should  be ;  but  I  do,  nevertheless,  firmly  believe  that  as 
an  acquired  taste  he  will  never  grow  in  popularity  in 
the  North,  and  will  everywhere  become  less  and  less 
of  a  favorite  as  people  become  interested  in  sport. 
With  his  harnessy  action  and  peacocky  appearance  he 
is  seldom  apt  to  "take"  in  a  sporting  community. 
Somehow  it  would  seem  almost  as  incongruous  to  see 
a  hunting  woman  perched  up  on  a  five-gaited  Ken- 
tucky saddler  as  it  would  be  to  see  her  appear  on  a 
"milk-white  palfrey,"  arrayed  in  the  flowing  skirt  and 
beplumed  hat  of  Queen  Elizabeth's  time. 

So  much  for  the  five-gaited  saddler;  let  us  now  con- 
sider him  in  the  form  of  a  simple  three-gaited  hack. 
As  such  he  is  no  longer  what  might  be  termed  a  "  fancy 
breed,"  but  enters  into  direct  competition  with  the 
thoroughbred  type  of  horse. 

Being  of  the  same  breed  as  the  five-gaited  horse  he, 
of  course,  has  the  harnessy  appearance  and  carriage 
of  body  which  we  have  already  criticised.  No  longer 
possessing  the  easy  artificial  gaits  which  make  the 
former  comfortable  as  a  hack,  his  remaining  three 
gaits,  owing  to  his  straight  shoulders,  are  rarely  as 
comfortable  as  in  a  horse  of  the  thoroughbred  type. 
Since  he  has  been  bred  for  decades  for  saddle  work, 
he  is  usually  well-mannered  and  willing  to  walk  quietly 
in  a  flat-footed  manner  and,  at  the  same  time,  less  apt 
to  stub  his  toes  than  the  lower-actioned  thoroughbred; 
but  he  is  inclined  to  "paddle"  or  "wing"  at  the  walk 
as  well  as  in  the  trot.  At  this  latter  gait  his  action  is 
hard  with  excessively  high  knee  and  hock  action,  and 
is  bound  to  give  the  rider  far  more  work  or  exercise 
than  the  smooth  trot  of  the  thoroughbred,  which  is 
quite  high  enough  to  be  graceful  and  in  a  few  cases  even 


50  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

brilliant.  The  illustrations  facing  pages  36  and  86  are 
of  thoroughbred  hacks,  and  one  can  readily  see  that 
their  knee  action  is  quite  sufficient. 

When  it  comes  to  the  canter  I  think  few  riding  men 
or  women  will  hesitate  to  agree  that  in  this  gait,  above 
all  others,  the  thoroughbred  so  far  excels  as  to  be  in  a 
class  by  himself.  Comparatively  easy  though  the 
canter  of  a  perfectly  trained  Kentucky  horse  may  be, 
it  is  always  secondary  to  his  trot,  whereas  in  the  thor- 
oughbred exactly  the  reverse  is  the  case.  In  the  latter, 
though  his  trot  is  also  usually  smooth  and  easy  to 
rise  to,  it  is  less  perfect  than  his  canter,  and  herein 
lies  the  crux  of  the  whole  matter. 

Do  you  want  to  ride  for  exercise,  to  shake  your  liver, 
or  reduce  your  avoirdupois?  If  you  do,  by  all  means 
ride  the  Kentucky  horse,  for  his  hard  snappy  trot  will 
be  best  suited  to  your  need.  On  the  contrary,  if  you 
wish  to  ride  purely  for  the  joy  of  the  ride,  for  comfort 
and  relaxation  and  pleasure,  then  choose  the  thorough- 
bred. Thus,  by  a  curious  trick  of  fate  the  very 
animal,  once  famed  in  his  five-gaited  form  for  easy 
paces,  in  his  three-gaited  form  is  ranged,  in  the  present 
controversy  between  exercise  and  comfort,  on  the  side 
of  exercise. 

For  the  Englishman  there  is  no  argument  at  all  as 
to  which  gait  is  preferable.  Even  if  the  thoroughbred 
had  a  very  poor  trot  instead  of  a  moderately  good  one, 
he  would  still  prefer  him  above  all  other  breeds,  if  only 
because  of  his  canter.  The  English  may  have  been 
the  first  to  practise  rising  to  the  trot  to  any  extent, 
and  they  still  undoubtedly  appreciate  the  virtue  of  a 
trot ;  nevertheless,  when  out  hacking  for  pleasure  they 
seldom,  if  ever,  use  any  other  gait  but  a  canter.  They 
don't  want  to  exercise  when  hacking;  they  get  their 


THOROUGHBRED  VS.  KENTUCKY  HORSE  51 

exercise  in  indulging  in  other  vigorous  sports,  and  they 
hack  for  comfort  and  relaxation.  I  remember  that 
the  first  time  I  ever  rode  in  Rotten  Row,  Hyde  Park, 
I  seemed  to  be  the  only  person  in  the  Row  who  ever 
trotted,  and  yet  for  an  American  I  use  that  gait  very 
rarely.  To  them,  and  I  quite  agree  with  them,  a 
good  canter  is  the  raison  d'etre  for  hacking.  And  they 
quite  naturally,  therefore,  consider  the  thoroughbred 
the  ideal  of  what  a  hack  should  be.  Those  English 
people  who  cannot  afford  the  pure-bred  article,  or  who 
are  too  inexperienced  to  ride  it,  procure  a  horse  most 
nearly  approaching  that  type. 

Over  here  things  are  different.  The  average  Ameri- 
can is  not  a  horseman.  He  rides — not  for  pleasure — 
but  in  order  to  exercise,  and  he  is  seen  most  often  in 
city  parks,  bumping  his  liver  to  his  heart's  content. 
To  him  the  Kentucky-bred  horse,  with  his  high,  snappy 
trot,  appeals  vastly  more  than  the  thoroughbred,  and 
from  his  point  of  view  quite  rightly  so.  As  long  as  this 
type  of  rider  exists,  and  he  probably  always  will  in  this 
country,  the  Kentucky  saddle-horse  as  a  three-gaited 
animal,  and  quite  aside  from  his  five-gaited  career  in 
the  South,  will  undoubtedly  continue  to  serve  a  useful 
purpose. 

But  we  hope  that  one  day  this  type  of  American 
rider  is  going  to  be  in  the  minority  instead  of  the 
majority.  Every  year  country  life  over  here  is  grow- 
ing to  resemble  more  closely  the  country  life  as  lived 
in  England.  Every  year  more  and  more  men  and 
women  are  entering  into  all  sorts  of  healthful  outdoor 
sports  and  learning  to  enjoy  more  keenly  hunting, 
polo,  etc.,  and  consequently  to  look  on  hacking  as  a 
relaxation  instead  of  a  form  of  Swedish  gymnastics, 
and  they  are,  therefore,  coming  more  and  more  to  ap- 


52  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

predate  the  merits  of  the  thoroughbred  type  of  horse 
as  a  hack. 

It  is  true  that  we  will  probably  never  learn  to 
love  the  canter  as  much  as  the  English  do,  because 
the  majority  of  our  roads  and  bridle-paths  are  too 
hard  to  indulge  in  that  gait  to  any  great  extent. 
Even  though  the  bridle-paths  may  eventually  be  im- 
proved, even  though  laws  may  be  passed  to  provide  a 
soft  passage  alongside  of  our  principal  highways,  and 
pubhc-minded  citizens  cut  "rides"  through  their 
estates  and  woods,  we  can  hardly  hope  to  imitate  the 
wonderful  cantering  turf  that  England  and  Ireland 
possess.  Can  we  ever  duplicate  the  miles  on  miles 
of  grassy  woodland  avenues  through  Windsor  forest, 
or  the  " Downs"  of  springy  English  turf  that  stretch 
from  Buckinghamshire  to  the  sea?  England  will 
always  be  the  Horseman's  Paradise !  But  the  fact  that 
we  may  have  to  trot  our  hacks  more  often  than  the 
English  do  and  indulge  in  the  pleasure  of  cantering 
less  often  will  not  necessarily  make  it  impossible  for 
us  to  appreciate  the  merits  of  the  thoroughbred  hack, 
once  we  have  learned  to  love  him. 

If  our  arguments  in  favor  of  the  thoroughbred  type 
of  horse  have  seemed  inadequate,  it  is  because,  after  all 
is  said  and  done,  the  highest  qualities  of  what  consti- 
tute a  good  hack  are  most  difficult  to  express  because 
they  are  almost  intangible.  The  high  head,  peacocky 
appearance  and  harnessy  trot  of  the  Kentucky  horse 
may,  perhaps,  seem  but  trifles  on  which  to  condemn 
him,  but  trifles  though  they  may  be,  they  nevertheless 
constitute  the  sum  total  of  what  makes  a  real  saddle 
horse  and  what  does  not.  It's  the  difference  of  "feel" 
between  the  two  types  of  horses  that  really  matters, 
and  once  having  learned  the  "feel"  of  a  thoroughbred 


THOROUGHBRED  VS.  KENTUCKY  HORSE  53 

you  will  seldom  be  content  to  ride  anything  else.  In 
confirmation  of  which  statement  I  might  add  that  I 
have  heard  of  many  people  being  converted  from  the 
Kentucky  type  of  horse  to  the  thoroughbred,  but  I 
never  have  heard  of  the  reverse ! 

It  may  be  argued  that  beautifully  formed  as  many  a 
thoroughbred  is  for  saddle  work,  his  manners  are 
usually  so  far  from  perfect  that  he  is  not  the  model 
saddle  horse,  but  this  statement,  as  a  rule,  only  applies 
to  the  registered  thoroughbred,  or  more  particularly 
ex-race-horse,  and  in  no  way  mitigates  our  statements 
in  regard  to  the  type.  We  are  forced  to  admit  that 
for  the  timid,  for  the  novice,  the  aged,  or  even  for 
the  tired  business  man,  who  has  neither  time  nor  in- 
clination to  give  his  mount  much  attention,  the 
three-quarter  or  half-bred  of  the  thoroughbred  type 
(termed  a  "blood  one")  is  a  better  saddle  horse  than 
the  more  exquisitely  bred  one.  He  will  be  quieter, 
less  apt  to  shy  or  buck,  and  he  will  undoubtedly  re- 
quire less  exercise  to  keep  him  from  playing  up.  The 
registered  thoroughbred,  although  he  seldom  has  a 
mean  hair  in  his  head,  and  is  often  so  phlegmatic  that 
he  has  to  be  roused  in  order  to  do  his  best,  is  not  as 
lazy  or  sluggish  as  he  looks  and  has  the  peculiar 
ability  to  do  the  most  unexpected  things  at  the  most 
unexpected  moments,  which  is  most  disconcerting  to 
the  novice.  He  can  shy  and  drop  a  shoulder  in  the 
twinkling  of  an  eye,  and  squeal  and  kick,  all  in  play, 
without  the  slightest  warning,  with  his  ears  pricked 
and  a  smile  on  his  face.  If,  however,  you  are  fortunate 
enough  to  be  a  good  rider — if — whether  you  be  child 
or  grown-up — you  possess  that  "something"  that 
makes  you  a  real  horseman  or  horsewoman,  then  you 
have  in  the  possession  of  the  registered  thoroughbred 


54  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

a  treat  for  the  gods !  Everything  that  applies  to  the 
type  in  general  applies  to  him  only  in  a  greater  degree. 
His  form,  his  air  of  breeding,  intelligence,  gaits  and 
heavenly  canter,  all  represent  the  saddle-horse  type 
in  its  state  of  perfection.  What  is  more,  through  long 
generations  in  which  the  weak  and  unambitious  have 
been  weeded  out  to  make  place  for  those  who  have 
made  good  on  the  race-track,  the  thoroughbred  pos- 
sesses more  endurance  and  brains  and  grit  than  all  the 
other  breeds  put  together.  Given  the  ability  to  un- 
derstand him  and  to  ride  him,  he  makes  the  real 
horseman's  ideal  hack.  To  him  belongs  the  palm. 
If  he  has  just  come  off  the  race-track,  which  is  usually 
the  case,  and  has  never  been  carefully  and  properly 
broken  for  saddle  work,  as  is  done  in  England  (where 
they  have  as  many  quiet  and  well-mannered  thorough- 
breds as  we  have  well-mannered  Kentucky  horses),  he 
will,  in  all  probability,  be  hot-headed  and  hard  to 
manage  and  require  patient  training.  This  is  not 
because  he  is  stupid  or  obstinate,  but  because  he  has 
never  been  asked  to  do  more  than  perhaps  turn  to  the 
right  or  left,  walk,  trot,  canter  and  break  away  from 
the  barrier.  The  average  trainer  of  race-horses,  quite 
naturally,  knows  little  and  cares  less  about  the  making 
of  saddle  horses,  and  the  jockeys,  though  they  are 
wonderful  judges  of  pace  and  know  how  to  get  the  last 
ounce  of  speed  out  of  their  mounts,  excel  in  their  own 
line,  but  are  not  good  riders  in  the  sense  that  the  trainer 
of  saddle  horses  understands  the  word.  Consequently, 
the  ex-race-horse  knows  little  or  nothing  about  the 
ordinary  rudiments  of  hacking.  If  you  lose  your 
patience  with  him,  if  you  ask  of  him  things  before  he 
has  learned  how  to  do  them,  you  will  have  a  fight  on 
your  hands — a  fight  to  the  finish — and  you  deserve 


THOROUGHBRED  VS.  KENTUCKY  HORSE  55 

one.  But  if  you  gradually,  patiently,  and  kindly  teach 
him  exactly  what  you  expect  of  him,  he  will  not 
be  long  in  learning.  The  beautifully  broken  English 
hacks  I  have  already  spoken  of,  broken  to  the  minute, 
and  most  of  them  high-school  horses,  were  ex-race- 
horses. 

In  conclusion  I  cannot  do  better  than  quote  Cap- 
tain E.  B.  Cassatt,  in  the  Rasp,  of  1914,  who  says: 
"Your  ex-race-horse  will  be  quick  to  learn  anything 
you  teach  him  properly;  he  will  never  forget  it;  he 
will  walk  his  four  miles,  trot  his  eight  miles,  and 
canter  like  a  rocking-chair  at  any  pace  you  please, 
from  four  to  fifteen  miles  an  hour;  he  will  carry  his 
head  and  neck  just  where  you  want  it;  he  will  not  pull 
you;  he  will  beat  your  best  girl's  saddler  a  quarter  of 
a  mile  to  ten  miles  and  be  fresher  than  any  other  horse 
at  the  end  of  it ;  he  will  stop  for  you  at  any  part  of  the 
race  and  start  eating  grass  at  the  side  of  the  road; 
and  on  a  long,  man-wearing  ride  of  a  hundred  or  more 
miles,  he  will  give  you  no  notice  of  how  tired  he  is 
until  he  rolls  into  the  ditch,  dead." 


CHAPTER  V 
THE  HUNTER 

"  There  must  be  still  a  few  who  remember  the  stride  of  that  thor- 
oughbred bay, 
Taking  all  his  fences  neatly 
And  gliding  on  so  sweetly 
That  his  rider  scarce  seemed  to  feel  him  all  the  way; 
And  the  rider  knew  no  other 
To  treat  him  as  a  brother 
And  bear  so  big  a  burden  through  a  long  and  tiring  day." 

— Geo.  A.  Fothergill. 

Who  was  it  said  that  no  better  illustration  could  be 
found  of  the  old  adage,  "One  man's  meat  is  another 
man's  poison,"  than  the  different  types  of  hunters 
considered  ideal  by  various  individuals?  It  is  almost 
impossible  to  make  any  hard-and-fast  rule  as  to  what 
constitutes  a  good  hunter.  The  horse  that  is  suited 
to  a  cramped  country  would  not  necessarily  be  a  good 
performer  over  a  " flying"  country,  and  vice  versa, 
nor  would  the  animal  adapted  to  the  needs  of  the  con- 
servative rider  please  the  bruiser. 

One  thing,  however,  is  quite  certain,  namely,  that 
whereas  in  the  hack  good  looks  and  smooth  gaits  are 
the  prime  requisites,  in  the  hunter  these  are  secondary 
to  speed  and  strength,  and  above  all  else,  intelligence 
and  ability  to  jump.  Possessed  of  these  qualities,  he 
may  be  a  "rum  'un  to  look  at,  but  a  devil  to  go." 
Nothing  gives  one  so  much  satisfaction  as  to  be 
mounted  on  a  "good  looker,"  and  in  fact  I  am  one  of 
those  who  so  love  a  really  beautiful  horse  that  merely 
to  be  on  one  adds  50  per  cent  to  the  enjoyment  of  the 
day;  but  if  you  cannot  afford  to  own  a  horse  possessed 
of  both  looks  and  ability,  it  goes  without  saying  that 

56 


THE  HUNTER  57 

you  must,  perforce,  choose  the  latter.  It  is  infinitely 
better  to  own  a  Ford  that  runs  than  a  six-thousand- 
dollar  car  that  breaks  down ! 

In  judging  a  hunter,  look  first  at  his  head  for  signs 
of  brains.  As  Whyte  Melville  said:  "People  talk 
about  size  and  shape,  shoulders,  quarters,  blood,  bone, 
and  muscle,  but  for  my  part  give  me  a  hunter  with 
brains.  He  has  to  take  care  of  the  bigger  fool  of  the 
two  and  look  out  for  both." 

A  head  of  medium  length,  wide  between  the  eyes 
and  across  the  forehead  is  the  type  desired,  while  in  a 
horse  with  unusual  intelligence  we  sometimes  find  a 
prominence  in  the  upper  part  of  the  forehead.  Much 
of  the  character  of  the  horse  can,  after  some  practice, 
be  learned  by  studying  his  countenance.  The  eyes 
should  be  mild  and  generous  looking.  Small,  pig-eyes 
are  more  to  be  avoided  in  a  hunter  than  a  hack.  A 
Roman-nosed  hunter  is  apt  to  be  a  handful. 

The  hunter  should  have  a  deep  jowl,  with  a  good 
open  throat,  and  his  neck  should  be  long,  well  shaped, 
and  come  out  of  his  body  properly.  Horses  with  ewe 
necks,  swan  necks,  and  short  thick  necks  are,  for 
reasons  already  specified  in  Chapter  II,  to  be  avoided. 
On  the  other  hand,  the  hunter's  neck,  even  more  than 
the  hack's,  must  be  strong  and  well  muscled  up,  for  if 
too  pliable  it  will  bend  over  readily,  and  in  endeavoring 
to  avoid  a  collision  or  an  unforeseen  hole  the  horse  is 
apt  to  answer  with  his  head  alone,  bending  his  neck 
around  while  his  body  continues  straight  on. 

A  fairly  small  nicely  placed  ear  is  an  addition  to 
looks,  and  more  or  less  essential  in  a  horse  intended 
for  show  purposes,  but  the  hot-tempered,  rabbit-eared 
horse  is  less  desirable  than  the  more  generous  mule 
or  lop-eared  animal. 


58  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

After  intelligence  the  next  great  essentials  in  a 
hunter  are:  good  sound  legs  with  clean  bone.  Re- 
member the  old  saw:  "No  fut,  no  'oss;  no  'ock,  no 
'unter."  The  pretty  gazelle-like  legs  which  might 
suffice  the  hack  would  scarcely  be  expected  to  do  for 
the  hunter.  Fairly  straight,  short  pasterns,  although 
they  do  not  denote  as  much  speed  or  elasticity  as 
sloping  ones,  are  stronger  and  better  able  to  bear  the 
jar  of  jumping  and  landing  on  rough  ground. 

Slightly  "sprung  knees,"  if  these  are  a  natural 
formation,  do  not  necessarily  count  against  a  hunter, 
unless  he  is  to  be  exhibited  in  a  show  ring,  in  which 
case  any  malformation,  even  if  it  does  not  materially 
affect  the  animal,  is  not  acceptable.  A  hunter  with 
sprung  knees  is  infinitely  preferable  to  one  who  is 
"back  at  the  knees."  * 

The  thighs,  and  in  particular  the  "second  thighs," 
should  be  well  muscled  up,  giving  a  broad  appearance 
from  behind  and  presenting  what  is  termed  a  "good 
pair  of  breeches."  Ragged  hips,  while  not  allowable 
in  the  show  hunter,  in  no  way  detract  from  the  ability 
to  perform,  and  sloping,  "goose  rumps,"  or  "roached 
backs,"  while  likewise  not  beautiful  are  often  found 
in  the  cleverest  Irish  horses,  and  are  supposed  to  be  a 
sign  of  jumping  ability.  On  the  whole,  however,  a 
hunter  should  have  a  straight  back,  powerfully  mus- 
cled up,  and,  although  not  "swayed,"  it  should  err 
on  the  longish  side,  particularly  if  the  animal  is  to  be 
hunted  by  a  woman.  In  a  short-backed  horse,  or  in 
a  roach-backed  horse  all  the  propelling  power  of  the 
animal's  quarters  is  brought  directly  under  the  saddle 
when  he  jumps,  and  is  bound  to  twist  a  woman  sitting 

*  It  is  of  interest  to  note  that  quite  a  fair  proportion  of  the  winners 
of  the  Liverpool  Grand  National  were  slightly  "knee  sprung." 


Model  middle-weigh!  hunter,  Sir  Linsin. 

By  Imp.  Dublin  out  of  Insinuate.     Property  of  [saac  Clothier,  Jr.,  Esq. 


Model  light-weight  hunter,  Down  East. 
By  Yankee  out  of  Tarantella.     Property  of  Charles  D.  Lanier,  Esq. 


THE  HUNTER  59 

sidewise.  This  is  a  point  that  is  too  often  overlooked 
in  selecting  a  lady's  mount.  I  have  ridden  many 
hunters  and  jumpers  and  have  never  had  a  comforta- 
ble ride  over  a  jump  on  a  very  short-backed  one.  The 
same  thing  applies  to  a  horse  that  is  too  tightly  ribbed 
up.  In  order  to  be  comfortable  to  ride  and  possess 
freedom  of  stride  and  ability  to  jump  a  horse  must 
"stand  over  a  lot  of  ground"  and  "be  long  over  all." 
His  ribs,  however,  must  be  well  "sprung,"  for  a  flat- 
sided  animal  with  a  small  barrel  has  "no  place  to  put 
his  dinner,"  and  will  generally  be  a  poor  doer  and  not 
up  to  the  work  required  of  a  hunter. 

As  we  have  already  seen,  an  oblique  shoulder,  one 
in  which  the  bones  are  not  muscle-bound  and  can 
move  freely,  is,  owing  to  the  ease  of  stride  which  it 
gives,  desirable  in  any  horse  intended  for  saddle  work. 
In  a  hunter  the  advantages  derived  from  the  oblique 
shoulder  are  even  more  manifold.  Although  the  horse 
with  the  oblique  shoulder  can  gallop  no  faster  than  the 
straight-shouldered  one,  and  can  jump  no  higher 
(many  of  our  high  jumpers  are  straight-shouldered 
half-bred  hackneys*),  he  can  do  the  first  with  greater 
ease  for  the  rider,  and  the  second  with  more  safety  and 
with  far  less  concussion  to  himself.  He  can  land  down 
a  bank  or  recover  himself  after  a  bad  scramble  under 
circumstances  which  would  have  brought  the  straight- 
shouldered  horse  down.  If  in  addition  to  the  oblique 
shoulder  the  hunter  also  possesses  a  fairly  high  and 

*  Confidence,  who  has  the  record  of  8  feet  M-inch  (6ee  illustration), 
is  a  half-bred  hackney.  It  is  also  of  interest  to  note  that  the  wonder- 
ful little  jumper,  Bathgate  Swell  (ridden  by  the  late  Colonel  Kenna, 
V.  C.  D.  S.  O.),  who,  although  only  13.2  hands  high,  could  jump  6  feet 
4  inches  in  height  and  19  feet  broad,  was  also  a  full  registered  hack- 
ney. Then,  again,  the  deer,  who  is  a  straight-shouldered  animal,  is 
not  only  very  fast,  but  can  jump  heights  undreamed  of  by  a  horse. 


60  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

sloping  wither,  the  rider  will  have  the  advantage  of 
always  being  over  the  centre  of  gravity. 

Good  hunters  come  in  all  sizes,  but  the  average 
might  safely  be  placed  at  16  hands.  On  general  prin- 
ciples it  is  advisable  to  have  a  "  stone  in  hand,"  that 
is,  a  horse  should  be  capable  of  carrying  14  pounds 
over  and  above  the  weight  of  the  rider,  saddle,  etc. 
For  weight  carrying  purposes  a  "big  little  horse" 
should  be  chosen,  one  who  covers  a  lot  of  ground  but 
stands  on  short  legs  in  preference  to  a  big  leggy  beast. 
(See  illustration  facing  page  22.)  Great  size  is  not  neces- 
sary in  order  to  carry  weight,  for  with  good  flat  bone 
and  clean  tendons  that  have  a  flinty  look,  a  small,  well- 
bred  horse  is  often  up  to  far  more  weight  than  a  larger, 
less  well-bred  horse  with  round  bone  of  coarser  caliber. 
Big  well-bred  or  thoroughbred  hunters  up  to  200  pounds 
or  over  are  costly  luxuries,  for  although  scores 
of  small  horses  possess  quality — quality  plus  size  is 
difficult  to  find,  and  we  have  to  depend  for  most  of 
our  heavyweight  hunters  on  Irish  or  Canadian  horses, 
whose  grandams,  or  even  dams,  have  been  draft-horses. 

Some  people  are  so  keen  to  buy  bulk  in  a  heavy- 
weight hunter  that  they  are  rather  apt  to  overdo  the 
thing.  The  late  Mr.  James  Daly,  of  Liffey  Bank,  once 
rightly  reminded  a  friend  who  was  picking  out  heavy- 
weight horses,  that  the  horse  had  first  to  carry  him- 
self before  even  considering  the  rider. 

Hunters  usually  require  a  good  deal  of  time  to  learn 
the  game  well,  and  young  four  or  five  year  olds,  no 
matter  how  clever  they  may  be  at  fencing,  seldom  have 
had  enough  experience  to  be  reliable  for  a  beginner, 
or  for  a  woman,  unless  she  happens  to  be  a  first-class 
horsewoman.  Although  I  do  not  believe  in  the  prin- 
ciple of  giving  horses  falls  in  order  to  teach  them, 


THE   HUNTER  61 

nevertheless,  a  horse  of  about  eight  or  nine,  who  has 
had  a  few  tumbles  in  the  natural  course  of  things,  is 
in  his  prime  and  apt  to  make  the  safest  and  most 
comfortable  conveyance  across  a  country. 

Providing  that  it  is  deep  and  rich  of  its  kind,  color 
in  a  hunter  is  purely  a  matter  of  taste,  and  there  are 
good  ones  of  nearly  every  color,  with  the  possible  ex- 
ception of  piebalds  and  skewbalds,  which  are  seldom 
found  in  well-bred  horses.  Gray  is  a  favorite  color 
among  hunting  people,  as  it  sets  off  a  scarlet  coat  well, 
but  in  order  to  ride  a  gray,  one  should  be  prepared  to 
go  hard  and  straight,  for  every  mistake  or  refusal  can 
be  clearly  seen  at  a  distance ! 

The  choice  of  sex  is  more  important  in  a  hunter  than 
in  a  hack.  For  a  mare,  although  often  more  brilliant 
than  a  gelding,  is  (owing  to  her  variable  disposition) 
sometimes  disagreeable  and  difficult  to  hunt.  The 
owner  of  a  mare  can  perhaps  make  up  for  these  draw- 
backs by  being  able,  in  after-years,  to  have  the  joy 
of  breeding  from  his  favorite  hunter;  but  for  the  aver- 
age person  owning  but  one  horse  and  intending  to 
hunt  regularly  without  let  up,  the  gelding,  other  things 
being  equal,  is  perhaps  the  wiser  choice. 

Elegance  and  style  of  carriage,  so  essential  to  a  hack, 
while  always  desirable,  are  by  no  means  necessary  in 
a  hunter.  He  should,  nevertheless,  carry  himself  easily, 
be  bridle-wise,  come  to  hand,  and  flex  his  neck  readily 
and  without  great  effort  on  the  part  of  the  rider. 

I  personally  prefer  a  horse  who  can  be  hunted  in  a 
snaffle  bridle,  but  this  is  largely  a  matter  of  taste, 
and  depends  on  the  individual  horse  and  on  the  type 
of  country  to  be  hunted.  If  one  is  hunting  in  a  nar- 
row, cramped  country,  where  there  is  much  stopping 
and  quick  turning,  a  double  bridle  is  undoubtedly 


62  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

more  efficient,  but  if  one  is  fortunate  enough  to  be 
crossing  a  fast  flying  country,  mounted  on  a  real 
snaffle-bridle  horse,  there  is  nothing  so  delightful  as 
the  simple  "feel"  of  the  snaffle  rein. 

Unfortunately  there  are  very  few  real  snaffle-bridle 
horses.  It  does  not  suffice  that  a  horse  can  be  ridden 
in  a  snaffle  without  actually  running  away.  To  earn 
the  title  he  must  not  only  have  such  a  light  mouth 
that  he  can  be  ridden  on  a  thread,  stop,  turn  and  flex 
himself  only  a  shade  less  readily  in  the  snaffle  bridle 
than  in  a  double,  and  most  important  of  all,  he  must 
gallop  "naturally"  collectedly,  and  not  because  of  any 
artificial  aid  given  by  the  rider.  Real  snaffle-bridle 
horses  are  born,  not  made. 

But  whether  in  a  snaffle  or  a  double  bridle,  the  ideal 
carriage  for  a  hunter's  head  is  neither  very  low  nor 
very  high,  and  he  should  keep  his  eyes  on  the  ground. 
If  he  carries  too  low  a  head  he  is  apt  to  lean  the  weight 
of  it  on  his  bit  and  be  a  very  trying  sort  of  mount. 
On  the  other  hand,  this  is  preferable  to  a  very  high- 
headed  horse  or  "  star-gazer,"  for  he  may  hit  his  rider 
in  the  face  if  he  throws  up  his  head  when  jumping, 
and  is  unable  to  measure  his  jumps  properly,  unless 
ridden  with  a  very  short  martingale,  which  is  always 
a  tricky  business,  unless  one  has  very  good  hands. 
There  are,  of  course,  many  hunters  who  either  hang 
their  heads  or  poke  their  noses  in  the  air,  and  yet  are 
safe  and  reliable  in  spite  of  these  faults,  and  not  be- 
cause of  them.  Other  things  being  equal,  however,  a 
horse  who  carries  a  good  head,  flexes  his  neck,  and 
comes  to  hand  as  readily  as  a  perfect  hack,  is  more 
nearly  the  ideal  hunter. 

Hunting  men  are  too  apt  to  ridicule  " school" 
methods,  but  they  would  do  better  to  realize  that, 


THE   HUNTER  63 

except  in  the  case  of  veteran  hunters  with  whom  it  is 
better  to  leave  well  enough  alone,  a  short  course  of 
training  to  teach  a  horse  to  flex,  canter  slowly,  leading 
on  either  leg,  to  back  readily,  and  even  to  "passage" 
and  " traverse"  a  few  steps,  cannot  help  but  be  of 
great  assistance  to  him  in  rendering  him  handy, 
nimble,  and  clever  at  his  jumps. 

One  of  the  cleverest  little  thoroughbred  hunters  I 
ever  owned,  who  always  jumped  in  a  snaffle  bridle 
without  even  a  martingale,  would  pop  easily  over  five 
feet  with  the  reins  loose  on  his  neck,  without  touch- 
ing a  rail,  and  yet  half  an  hour  later  he  could  be 
slipped  into  a  double  bridle,  arch  his  neck,  give  you 
his  "school"  head,  passage,  piaffe,  and  do  everything 
short  of  a  Spanish  Walk  as  prettily  as  a  little  circus 
horse.  I  feel  quite  convinced  that  the  training  he 
had  gotten  in  "school"  methods  of  handling  himself 
was  a  distinct  help  to  him  in  his  jumping.  Hunting, 
racing,  and  polo  may  be  the  "sports"  of  horseman- 
ship, but  "high  school"  is  its  art.  And  the  graceful 
airs  of  the  capriole,  croupade,  and  piaffe  are  more 
than  merely  wonderful  and  beautiful,  they  serve  many 
a  useful  purpose  as  well.  "By  a  school  training  a 
dangerous  horse  may  be  made  safe,  or  a  chronic 
stumbler  be  taught  to  catch  himself,  or  the  average 
ungainly,  clumsily  moving  brute  be  made  light  and 
handy,  and  responsive  to  the  bit  and  leg,  and  this 
demonstrates  its  usefulness.  Is  it  not  useful  to  take 
a  puller,  or  a  horse  so  high-strung  that  it  is  a  risk  for 
any  one  to  ride  him,  and  make  him  moderate  and  safe 
for  even  a  woman  to  ride,  if  she  is  taught  what  his 
training  is  and  is  trained  herself?"*    In  fact,  a  short 

*  "Riders  of  Many  Lands,"  by  Lieutenant-Colonel  Theodore  A. 
Dodge. 


64  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

school  training  is  bound  to  be  of  benefit  to  any  type 
of  horse,*  with  the  possible  exception  of  the  race-horse 
intended  for  great  speed.  But  for  the  hunter  the 
decrease  of  speed  caused  by  school  work  is  so  slight 
as  to  be  immaterial;  hounds,  even  in  a  drag,  never  run 
fast  enough  to  make  a  thoroughbred  horse  extend 
himself  to  his  full  limit. 

A  good,  flat-footed  walk  is  essential  in  a  hunter  if 
one  wishes  to  have  any  comfort  in  hacking  home  after 
a  long  day's  run.  Many  a  time  I  have  blessed  the 
walk  of  a  gray  mare  of  mine  who,  when  the  day's 
hunting  was  over  and  we  turned  homeward,  would 
strike  a  walk  so  smooth  and  easy  as  to  enable  me  to 
reach  home  sooner,  and  with  less  exertion,  than  any 
other  member  of  the  hunt.  Moreover,  the  freedom  of 
action  which  a  good  walk  indicates  (one  in  which  the 
hind  foot  covers  the  print  made  by  the  fore,  by  at 
least  6  or  7  inches),  is  very  essential  in  enabling  a 
horse  to  jump  with  safety. 

Although  a  good  walk  and  a  fine  low  canter  are 
more  essential  in  the  hunter  than  a  superior  trot, 
nevertheless,  there  are  certain  qualities  in  the  trot 
which  are  desirable,  if  for  no  other  reason  than  that 
they  indicate  complete  freedom  of  motion.  For  in- 
stance, a  hunter  should  trot  lightly  and  easily,  flexing 
his  hocks  and  bringing  them  under  his  body  with 
energy  instead  of  dragging  them  along  behind  him. 
He  should  bend  his  knees  easily,  step  lightly,  and  raise 
his  feet  high  enough  to  avoid  tripping,  but  even  the 
low,  straight-kneed  " daisy-cutting"  action  possessed 
by  so  many  "Touchstone"  descendants  is  preferable 
in  a  hunter  to  excessive  knee  action. 

*  The  French  rather  than  the  German  methods  of  high  school  should 
be  used.  The  latter  are  not  "legere"  enough,  and  are  apt  to  teach  a 
horse  to  be  rigid  and  stiff. 


THE  HUNTER  65 

At  each  step  the  forefoot,  when  extended,  should 
be  placed  level  on  the  ground,  neither  pressing  on  the 
heel  nor  on  the  toe,  and  the  foot  should  come  down  at 
the  full  length  of  the  stride  and  not  be  drawn  back  an 
inch  or  so,  before  reaching  the  ground.  The  latter  is  a 
sign  of  a  horse  being  "tied  up  in  the  shoulder"  and 
consequently  unableto  extend  himself  at  a  gallop  or 
over  a  wide  jump.  Horses  who  "dish"  and  "paddle" 
and  "wind  their  feet"  when  trotting  are  undesirable 
as  hunters  as  they  are  as  hacks,  and  those  who  brush 
and  interfere  are  a  nuisance  as  they  require  constant 
attention  and  special  shoeing  and  boots.  "Pigeon- 
toed"  horses  (those  who  turn  their  toes  in),  although 
often  wanting  in  speed,  usually  make  excellent  hunters, 
and  are  less  apt  to  brush  or  interfere  than  those  who 
turn  their  feet  out,  a  formation  always  to  be  avoided. 

As  the  canter  and  gallop  are  the  hunter's  chief  gaits 
it  is  most  important  that  they  should  not  be  labored, 
hard,  or  "stilty,"  but  easy  and  comfortable  to  sit. 
The  stride  should  neither  be  so  long  as  to  be  un- 
gainly— a  most  tiring  gait  for  a  woman — nor  should 
it  be  choppy  and  short.  At  the  gallop  the  horse  should 
bend  his  knees  but  little,  in  fact  "he  should  travel  low 
to  the  ground,  as  if  he  had  no  knees." 

Quality  is  as  essential  in  the  high-class  hunter  as 
we  have  already  seen  it  to  be  in  the  high-class  hack. 
Judging  by  the  paintings  of  old,  both  hunters  and 
hounds  in  the  times  of  "Surtees"  were  stockier  and 
possessed  less  breeding  than  our  horses  and  hounds 
of  to-day.  But  within  the  last  generation  or  so  hounds 
have  become  more  and  more  breedy,  the  pace  conse- 
quently has  become  faster  and  faster,  and  to-day  if 
you  want  to  keep  up  with  hounds  in  a  "flying"  coun- 
try, if  you  want  to  be  able  to  catch  up  to  them  if  you 


66  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

should  lose  them,  if  you  want  to  get  the  full  enjoy- 
ment of  hunting  and  not  run  the  risk  of  having  a  tired, 
underbred  beast  lie  down  on  you,  your  hunter  must 
be  well  bred.  Once  you  have  ridden  a  well-bred  one 
you  will  never  feel  at  home  or  enjoy  a  ride  on  a  common 
one. 

But  by  " well-bred"  I  do  not  necessarily  mean  clean- 
bred.  For  the  average  rider  the  three-quarter  or  half- 
bred  horse  is  undoubtedly  the  best  all-round  useful 
hunter.  He  has  most  of  the  good  qualities  of  the 
thoroughbred,  but  the  dash  of  "cold"  blood  renders 
him  less  hot-headed  and  more  reliable  than  his  full- 
blooded  brother,  who,  owing  to  the  fact  that  he  is 
usually  an  ex-race-horse,  is  apt  to  be  hot-headed  in 
company.  The  thoroughbred  is  typically  a  "  horse- 
man's horse"  and  often  gives  even  the  best  of  these  a 
strenuous  ride.  As  Whyte  Melville  says:  " Although 
undoubtedly  the  best,  I  cannot  affirm  that  they  (the 
thoroughbreds)  are  always  the  pleasantest  hunters." 

If,  however,  you  are  so  fortunate  as  to  be  able 
to  obtain  a  well-mannered,  temperate  thoroughbred 
hunter,  you  possess  the  acme  of  equine  perfection. 
The  recognized  aristocrat  among  horses,  in  speed  he 
has  no  rivals,  and  he  has  always  by  far  the  best  of  it 
in  a  fast  run  or  in  a  drag  over  a  flying  country. 
Moreover,  bred  for  generations  for  racing  purposes, 
in  which  soundness  and  great  courage  are  the  main 
requisites,  he  has,  in  his  struggles  for  victory,  acquired 
"staying"  powers  which  no  other  horse  in  the  world 
possesses.  The  old  adages,  "It's  blood  that  tells"  and 
"A  thoroughbred  never  stops,"  have  their  origin  in  the 
common  every-day  experiences  of  those  who  know  and 
love  the  breed.  Time  and  again  the  thoroughbred  has 
proved  not  only  that  he  is  able  to  cany  more  weight 


THE   HUNTER  67 

in  proportion  to  his  size  than  any  other  breed,  but  that 
at  the  end  of  a  long,  hard  gallop  through  deep  fields, 
which  has  reduced  the  underbred  horse  to  a  walk, 
he  will  struggle  gallantly  on,  galloping  and  jumping 
till  he  drops  in  his  tracks.  "  Though  many  an  active 
underbred  horse  is  gifted  with  a  surprising  burst  of 
speed  for  a  short  distance,  it  cannot  sustain  the  effort, 
and  is  soon  done  up,  and  it  is  in  the  power  of  main- 
taining pace  and  strength  when  blown  that  the  thor- 
oughbred excels  all  others.  Moreover,  a  good-tem- 
pered docile  blood  horse  can  scarcely  be  put  to  any 
description  of  work  in  which  he  will  not  beat  the 
low-bred  animal,  in  proportion  to  the  powers  of  the 
individual.  Even  in  moving  heavy  weights  it  is 
astounding  what  a  light-looking  thoroughbred  horse 
can  achieve.  There  is  on  record  a  match,  which  took 
place  at  Dycers  Repository  in  Stephens  Green,  Dublin, 
about  sixty  years  ago.  .  .  .  The  question  to  be 
solved  was  whether  a  thoroughbred  could  stand  up 
under  as  great  a  weight  as  a  low-bred  horse.  .  .  . 
Only  two-year  olds  could  be  obtained  at  such  short 
notice  to  champion  the  race,  and  weight  was  piled  up 
until  the  cart-bred  animal  lay  down.  The  thorough- 
bred not  only  stood  up  under  the  same  burden,  but 
actually  walked  out  of  the  yard  with  the  weight  on 
its  back,  which  amounted  to  nearly  twenty-four  stone" 
(326  pounds).* 

We  now  come  to  the  most  important  of  all  a  hunter's 
qualities,  i.  e.,  his  ability  to  jump.  He  may  be  a 
picture  to  look  at,  and  have  gaits  as  easy  as  a  rocking- 


*  "The  Horse,"  by  Colonel  Meysey-Thompson.  This  illustration 
is  only  given  to  show  what  the  high  courage  of  the  thoroughbred  will 
enable  him  to  do.  It  goes  without  saying  that  for  long-sustained 
pulls  of  heavy  weights  the  draft  breeds  are  the  best  adapted. 


68  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

chair,  but  if  he  cannot  jump  he  is  of  no  use  whatsoever. 
The  ideal  hunter,  if  he  is  to  be  hunted  with  the  aver- 
age pack  of  hounds,  or  if  he  is  to  be  shown  in  the  ring, 
must  be  able  to  jump  four  feet  six  inches  with  ease, 
and  should  be  able  to  clear  five  feet  at  a  pinch.  One 
hears  some  people  say  that  a  horse  who  can  jump  four 
feet  well  may  be  hunted  with  any  pack  of  hounds, 
and  undoubtedly  he  can,  but  only  if  the  rider  is  con- 
tent to  trail  on  behind  and  wait  until  bars  are  broken. 
If  you  want  to  ride  out  in  front;  if  you  wish  to  ride 
straight  and  hard,  it  is  impossible  to  do  so  on  a  horse 
whose  limit  of  height  is  as  low  as  this.  Even  if  up 
to  four  feet  six  inches,  he  will,  in  a  big  country,  be 
obliged  to  jump  his  limit  much  of  the  time,  while  the 
five-foot  horse  would  always  have  a  bit  to  spare  and 
so  become  less  tired.  Moreover,  although  you  may 
only  meet  five  feet  once  in  a  blue  moon,  when  you  do 
meet  it  you  want  to  be  able  to  jump  it. 

The  form  or  style  in  which  a  horse  takes  off  and 
lands  is  of  equal  importance  to  the  actual  ability  to 
get  up  to  great  heights.  The  old  saying  that  a  horse 
should  go  fast  at  water,  but  slow  at  timber,  is  all  very 
well  as  far  as  it  goes,  and  is  undoubtedly  an  excellent 
precept  to  drum  into  the  novice,  who,  as  a  rule,  is  too 
inclined  to  rush  all  jumps;  but  in  practice  a  horse  who 
goes  right  up  under  his  fences  and  then  jumps  them 
" stickily"  is  as  dangerous,  if  not  more  so,  than  the 
horse  who  attempts  to  fly  them  in  his  stride.  If  the 
latter  hits  the  jump  he  will  probably  do  so  with  suffi- 
cient force  to  throw  the  rider,  if  a  man,  well  over  his 
head  and  quite  clear  of  him;  while  a  woman  will  at 
least  get  far  enough  away  so  as  not  to  be  entirely 
under  him  when  he  falls.  But  the  horse  who  creeps 
up  under  his  fences  before  he  takes  off,  will,  when  he 


THE  HUNTER  69 

hits  them,  come  down  all  in  a  sickening  heap  and 
crumple  up  right  on  top  of  his  rider. 

It  is,  then,  the  everlasting  happy  medium  that  we 
must  look  for.  Timber  of  any  height  cannot  be 
jumped  in  the  chancy  way  that  brush  is  negotiated, 
nor  should  it  ever  be  " raced"  over,  but  what  horse- 
men really  mean  when  they  say  that  a  horse  should 
jump  timber  slowly  and  collectedly  is  that,  no  matter 
how  fast  he  comes  down  at  it,  he  should,  before  actually 
taking  off,  "set  himself"  and  bring  his  hocks  under 
him  for  the  jump.  If  he  does  this  properly  he  may 
go  at  his  fences  at  almost  any  speed  and  yet  be  a  safe 
timber-topper.  Although  a  really  clever  hunter  may 
be  able  to  jump  from  a  trot  or  a  walk  when  necessary, 
he  will,  nevertheless,  do  so  with  greater  ease  and 
comfort  and  safety  if  he  is  able  to  approach  his  jumps 
at  sufficient  pace  to  get  up  momentum. 

It  is  preferable  for  a  woman's  horse  to  approach  a 
jump  leading  on  his  off  fore  leg,  but  a  really  good 
hunter  should  be  able  to  jump  smoothly  off  of,  and 
land  on,  either  leg  and  not  be  obliged  to  change  leads 
at  the  last  moment.  He  should  clear  the  jump  with 
just  enough  to  spare,  but  he  should  not  unnecessarily 
exert  himself  by  clearing  a  far  greater  height  than  that 
required.  A  horse  who  thus  "overjumps,"  although 
he  gives  one  a  delightfully  safe  "feel"  and  is  generally 
a  brilliant  performer  in  the  show  ring,  soon  tires  him- 
self out  in  the  hunting  field.  In  fact,  on  one  occasion, 
I  know  of  a  hunter  judge,  in  a  show  ring,  for  this 
reason  turning  down  a  well-known  Canadian  ring 
jumper  in  favor  of  a  horse  who,  although  less  brilliant, 
measured  his  jumps  more  accurately  and  would  there- 
fore have  lasted  longer  in  the  field. 

A  good  jumper  should  fold  his  knees  well  under  him 


70  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

when  jumping.  (See  illustration  facing  page  70.) 
Horses  who  drag  their  knees  or  chance  their  jumps  by 
flinging  themselves  over  them  haphazard  are  very  dan- 
gerous to  ride,  for  some  day  they  are  sure  to  come  to 
grief.  Many  horses  who  twist  themselves  over  their 
jumps  are  clever,  but  are  usually  uncomfortable  for  a 
woman  to  ride.  A  horse  should  always  land  over  his 
jumps  "galloping,"  i.  e.,  in  his  stride,  and  ready  to  go  on 
rather  than  all  bunched  like  a  cat  on  four  feet,  or  with 
his  hind  feet  hitting  the  ground  first.  He  should,  on 
being  turned  at  a  jump,  prick  his  ears,  quicken  his 
pace  and  jump  it  without  undue  excitement  and  be 
easy  to  pull  up.  Animals  who  require  an  acre  lot  in 
which  to  stop  are  a  nuisance  as  well  as  dangerous  to 
ride.  In  a  fast  country  the  perfect  hunter  should  be 
able  to  gallop  down  over  his  jumps  at  a  good  pace, 
and  then  turn  about  in  a  trappy  spot  or  narrow  lane 
and  be  able  to  take  a  short  stride,  and  almost  from  a 
standstill  pop  over  a  fence  or  wall. 

More  than  this,  the  bona-fide  hunter  must,  in  gal- 
loping over  uneven  ground,  be  quick  to  avoid  a  stone 
or  a  rabbit-hole  in  his  stride.  Without  this  the  best 
jumping  in  the  world  would  get  you  nowhere  in  a 
rough  country,  for  your  horse  will  give  you  a  fall  on 
the  flat,  which  is  usually  a  far  nastier  tumble  than  a 
toss  over  a  fence,  owing  to  the  fact  that  neither  horse 
nor  rider  are  prepared  for  any  such  eventuality  and 
are  going  very  fast. 

This  brings  us  again  around  to  the  fact  that  intelli- 
gence and  a  good  disposition  are  the  sine  qua  non  of 
the  perfect  hunter.  Above  all,  if  he  is  to  be  a  woman's 
mount,  he  should  be  temperate,  yet  keen  to  go;  he 
must  not  pull  an  ounce,  nor  yet  require  whip  or 
spur;  he  must  be  light-hearted  enough  to  jump  when 


THE  HUNTER  71 

others  refuse,  and  yet  be  willing  to  wait  his  turn 
quietly  in  a  narrow  place.  He  can  scarcely  be  called 
a  real  lady's  horse  unless  he  will  walk  through  a  gap, 
for  although  some  otherwise  excellent  hunters  will, 
if  well-bred,  display  occasional  excusable  impatience, 
nothing  is  so  trying  for  all  concerned  as  a  horse 
who  starts  rearing  and  plunging  whenever  restrained. 
If  such  a  horse  is  otherwise  a  good  beast,  he  should 
only  be  hunted  on  "bye"  days,  when  the  fields  are 
small  and  his  patience  will  not  be  put  to  the  test  so 
frequently. 

The  really  good  hunter  must  enjoy  hunting — it  is, 
after  all,  a  "partnership  game,"  in  which  he  must  be 
willing  to  bear  his  share  of  fun  and  hardship.  Some 
people  claim  that  no  horses  like  hunting,  but  I  am 
quite  sure  that  they  are  wrong.  Any  one  who  has 
ever  seen  the  transformation  worked  by  the  sight  of 
hounds  in  an  otherwise  sleepy  horse,  or  has  witnessed 
the  squeals  of  delight  that  some  horses  indulge  in  at 
the  meet,  will  be  speedily  converted.  I  have  had 
hunters  who  never  paid  the  slightest  attention  to  any- 
thing that  the  other  horses  in  the  field  were  doing, 
but  would  keep  their  eyes  riveted  on  hounds  till  the 
latter  "found,"  when  they  would  tremble  with  eager- 
ness to  be  off.  As  for  the  love  of  jumping,  there  are 
countless  young  horses  who  will  do  it  for  the  pure 
love  of  the  thing,  and  who  cannot  be  kept  in  a  pad- 
dock except  by  very  large  fences.  I  have  a  little  filly, 
out  of  a  favorite  old  hunter  of  mine,  who,  when  ten 
days  old,  left  her  mother's  side  and  jumped  over  a 
little  three-foot  picket  fence,  and  when  slightly  over 
a  month  old  gaily  attempted  nearly  four  feet  two ! 
On  the  whole,  unless  a  horse  has  been  soured  he  is 
keen  to  jump  and  to  hunt. 


72  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

Joy  in  his  work,  intelligence,  and  a  nice  disposition, 
as  well  as  good  form  in  taking  off  and  landing  over 
his  jumps,  is  of  far  more  importance  than  the  fact  that 
he  may  occasionally  "tick"  a  jump  or  rattle  a  bar. 
"Whalebone,"  the  safest  hunter  I  ever  owned,  and  I 
think  I  may  say  one  of  the  best  that  ever  crossed 
Meadow  Brook,  nearly  always  gave  the  top  bar  of  a 
fence  a  sort  of  flick  with  his  hind  legs  in  passing,  and 
yet  he  not  only  carried  me  safely,  but  also  carried 
the  whip  of  the  famous  Meadow  Brook  Drag  for  three 
years  without  once  putting  him  down. 

In  the  show  ring,  on  the  contrary,  a  jumper  depends 
for  his  ribbons  on  the  exactness  of  his  jumping.  At 
Madison  Square  Garden,  and  most  other  big  shows, 
unless  a  horse  makes  a  practically  clean  performance 
over  the  eight  or  more  four-foot  six-inch  fences,  he 
might  as  well  go  home,  for  as  a  rule  a  dozen  horses 
will  have  done  this.  The  show-ring  jumper,  in  order 
to  jump  well  without  the  stimulus  and  excitement  of 
hounds,  must,  on  the  whole,  be  a  keener  and  more 
excitable  animal  than  the  hunter.  In  fact,  many  crazy 
runaway  brutes  make  excellent  show-ring  jumpers, 
and  I  am  sorry  to  say  that  a  large  percentage  of 
horses  who  win  at  most  of  our  shows  would  be  im- 
possible to  hunt.  Nevertheless,  there  are  many  genuine 
hunters  who  are  able  to  win,  and  each  year  we  find 
them  coming  more  to  the  fore  in  those  shows  in  which 
there  are  classes  especially  adapted  for  them. 

In  addition  to  the  ability  to  jump  accurately  and 
consistently,  making  a  clean  performance  eight  times 
out  of  every  ten,  the  show-ring  hunter  must  be  keen 
enough  not  to  sulk  because  of  the  absence  of  hounds, 
and  yet  should  be  well-mannered  enough  to  enter  the 
ring  quietly  and  jump  collectedly  in  spite  of  all  sorts 


THE   HUNTER  73 

of  strange  noises,  lights,  sights,  and  sounds.  He  must, 
to  boot,  be  very  handsome  if  he  is  to  win  in  "  con- 
formation" classes,  and  be  thoroughbred,  or  at  least 
three-quarter  bred.  The  underbred  horse  may  jump 
rings  around  the  others  but  will  rarely  get  a  look  in 
at  the  ribbons.  If  your  paragon  is  also  a  quiet  and 
reliable  hunter  in  the  field,  he  is  worth  his  weight  in 
gold,  and  my  advice  is  never  to  part  with  him  for  any 
price  or  under  any  circumstances. 


CHAPTER  VI 
THE  SIDE-SADDLE  VERSUS  THE  CROSS-SADDLE 

"  We  are  firm  believers  in  the  maxim  that  for  all  right  judgment  of 
anything,  it  is  useful,  nay,  essential,  to  see  the  good  qualities  before 
pronouncing  on  the  bad." — Carlyle. 

It  is  quite  impossible  to  discuss  how  a  woman  should 
ride  or  dress,  or  for  that  matter  anything  regarding 
horsemanship  for  women,  unless  we  first  determine 
the  moot  question  as  to  whether  she  should  ride  side- 
saddle or  astride. 

At  the  risk  of  appearing  biassed,  I  am  prepared  to 
state  most  emphatically  that  the  cross-saddle  is  not 
best  suited  to  a  woman's  requirements. 

In  making  such  an  assertion  one  is,  of  course,  bound 
to  lay  oneself  open  to  the  charge  of  being  old-fashioned 
and  ultra-conservative;  of  holding  to  the  antiquated 
opinion  that  because  a  thing  was  good  enough  for  our 
grandmothers  it  is  good  enough  for  us.  This  is,  how- 
ever, unfair.  One  can,  on  the  contrary,  be  so  optimis- 
tically modern  as  to  welcome  any  change,  providing 
that  change  is  for  the  better;  can  even  aspire  to  fly 
across  the  Atlantic  in  an  aeroplane  and  still  realize 
that  some  of  the  old  things  are  the  best  after  all. 

A  thing  is  not  good  simply  because  it  is  old  and 
established,  but,  on  the  other  hand,  neither  is  it  good 
merely  because  it  is  new.  It  is  true  that  nothing  on 
the  earth  remains  stationary — it  either  progresses  or 
retrogresses — but  it  is  equally  true  that  mere  novelty 
does  not  always  imply  progress. 

It  is  in  this  class  of  thing,  new  but  not  necessarily 

74 


SIDE-SADDLE  VS.   CROSS-SADDLE       75 

progressive,  that  one  might  safely  place  riding  astride 
for  women. 

Moreover,  it  will  probably  interest,  if  it  does  not 
necessarily  please,  the  advocates  of  the  cross-saddle, 
to  learn  that  the  fashion  is  not  as  entirely  modern 
as  they  think  it  to  be.  It  has  been  tried  before,  and 
given  up,  probably  because  it  did  not  prove  satis- 
factory in  the  long  run,  and  in  England  it  was  not 
until  Queen  Anne  of  Bohemia,  wife  of  Richard  II, 
introduced  the  side-saddle  that  women  ever  attempted 
to  jump  or  hunt.  There  are  many  laughing  allusions 
made  to  the  fact  that  the  side-saddle  was  supposed  to 
have  originated  in  order  to  facilitate  riding  for  a  lame 
queen,  and  that  modern  women  should  scorn  to  use 
an  invention  that  was  primarily  made  for  a  cripple. 
However,  it  would  be  as  foolish  for  women  to  hold 
its  origin  against  the  side-saddle  as  it  would  be  for 
us  to  discard  all  inventions  that  have  been  evolved, 
largely  by  accident,  in  much  the  same  way — as,  for 
example,  glass  or  saccharine.  Women  do  not  scorn 
to  play  cards  because  the  game  was  invented  to  amuse 
an  imbecile  king,  nor  do  they  refuse  to  have  profile 
portraits,  or  silhouettes  made,  just  because  it  so  hap- 
pened that  the  first  profile  was  made  for  a  one-eyed 
emperor  in  order  to  conceal  his  defect. 

Furthermore,  the  side-saddle  invented  for  the  lame 
queen  was  as  different  from  our  modern  side-saddle 
as  the  old-time  sailing  vessel  is  from  the  Mauretania. 
The  original  side-saddle  had  no  leaping  head,*  which 
latter  addition  was  not  invented  until  1830,  by  M. 
Pellier,   of   Paris,  f     Before   the   introduction   of  this 

*  See  chap.  XV,  page  206. 

t  Miss  Nellie  Holmes  was,  I  believe,  the  first  woman  to  ride  cross- 
country in  England  with  this  new  invention. 


76  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

most  necessary  change,  women  had  to  retain  their 
seat  solely  by  the  pressure  of  the  right  leg,  and  con- 
sequently they  did  little  but  amble  along  the  road  on 
their  "milk-white  palfreys."  Mr.  John  Allen  wrote, 
in  1825,  that  "the  left  leg  is  nearly,  if  not  wholly, 
useless,  for  though  a  stirrup  is  placed  on  the  foot, 
the  only  use  of  it  is  to  ease  the  leg  a  little,  which  for 
want  of  practice  might  ache  by  dangling  and  suspen- 
sion. 

That  the  modern  side-saddle  has  been  evolved  from 
this  cumbersome  and  uncomfortable  apparatus  is  no 
more  to  its  discredit  than  that  the  modern  locomotive 
has  been  developed  from  the  funny-looking  objects 
one  sees  portrayed  in  prints  of  1814. 

Let  us  now  carefully  discuss  the  various  merits  and 
demerits  of  the  side-saddle  versus  the  cross-saddle. 

The  side-saddle  usually  has  brought  against  it  the 
following  charges: 

(1)  That  it  is  more  apt  to  rub  a  horse's  back  than 
the  cross-saddle. 

(2)  That  it  is  apt  to  make  a  woman  one-sided  and 
enlarge  one  hip. 

(3)  That  a  horse  has  to  be  specially  broken  to  a 
side-saddle. 

(4)  That  in  case  of  an  accident  a  woman  is  more 
apt  to  be  dragged  from  a  side-saddle. 

(5)  That  a  woman  cannot  mount  or  dismount  as 
easily  from  a  side-saddle. 

(6)  That  she  cannot  get  her  hands  down  as  low  as 
in  a  cross-saddle,  and  that  having  a  leg  only  on  one 
side  she  cannot  get  her  mount  into  his  jumps  as  well, 
or  handle  a  mean  horse  as  skilfully  as  in  a  cross-saddle. 

(7)  That  the  pommels  of  the  side-saddle  are  ex- 
tremely dangerous  in  case  of  a  horse  falling  on  his  rider. 


SIDE-SADDLE  VS.  CROSS-SADDLE       77 

(8)  That  in  a  side-saddle  a  woman  is  barred  from 
playing  polo. 

In  answering  these  charges  in  the  order  in  which  I 
have  placed  them,  I  will  begin  by  saying: 

(1)  That  properly  adjusted  and  properly  ridden, 
there  is  no  more  reason  why  a  side-saddle  should  rub 
a  horse's  back  than  a  cross-saddle.  The  fault  is 
usually  in  the  rider  and  not  in  the  saddle.  I  have 
ridden  hundreds  of  horses  here  and  abroad,  often 
using  my  own  saddle,  which,  as  a  rule,  was  not 
especially  fitted  to  the  mount,  and  I  have  never  but 
once  given  a  horse  a  sore  back.  That  once,  with  all 
due  apologies  to  my  very  kind  host,  was  owing,  not 
to  the  saddle  but  to  the  fact  that  the  horse's  blood 
was  overheated,  and  that  he  became  saddle-galled  and 
girth-galled  even  under  a  man's  saddle.  In  fact,  I 
have  owned  horses  who  were  naturally  inclined  to 
sore  backs,  and  sometimes  had  raw  backs  when  I  ac- 
quired them,  and  yet  with  a  properly  adjusted  numnah 
I  have  cured  them  while  riding  daily,  and  even  hunt- 
ing them  in  a  side-saddle.  The  next  time  that  your 
horse  gets  a  sore  back,  don't  blame  the  saddle,  but 
rather  blame  yourself  for  carelessness  in  not  having  it 
properly  adjusted,  or,  worse  yet,  for  poor  riding. 

(2)  If  a  girl  becomes  one-sided  from  side-saddle 
riding,  it  is,  I  venture  to  say,  not  the  fault  of  the  saddle 
but  of  an  incorrect  style  of  riding.  I  believe  I  will  be 
backed  up  in  this  statement  by  most  riding-mistresses. 
If  a  woman  rises  at  the  trot  on  the  proper  leg,  and 
maintains  her  square  position  in  the  saddle  by  means 
of  keeping  her  right  thigh  at  the  correct  angle  instead 
of  twisting  around  from  the  waist  up  (see  Chapter  VII) 
she  will  not  become  one-sided.  While  I  can  naturally 
only  quote  my  own  particular  case  with  authority,  I 


78  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

feel  quite  sure  that  none  of  my  friends  who  ride  side- 
saddle are  one-sided.  In  fact,  I  have  never  noticed 
the  lop-sidedness  so  much  talked  about  in  women 
who  ride  side-saddle.     It  is  an  exploded  theory. 

(3)  The  idea  that  a  horse  has  to  be  especially  broken 
in  order  to  be  ridden  side-saddle  originated  in  the 
days  when  women  wore  long  flowing  skirts.  It  was 
quite  natural  that  in  those  days  a  horse  was  afraid  of 
a  woman's  skirt,  but  with  the  modern  habit  there  is 
little  danger  on  that  score.  I  do  not  mean  to  deny 
that  in  order  to  show  a  horse  to  perfection,  or  to  have 
him  go  his  best  out  hunting  under  a  side-saddle,  it  is 
well  to  accustom  him  to  the  different  distribution  of 
weight,  and  to  the  fact  that  his  rider  can  only  touch 
him  with  a  leg  on  one  side;  but  a  good  rider,  or  even  a 
moderate  one,  need  seldom  fear  to  use  a  side-saddle 
on  an  otherwise  broken  horse  who  is,  perchance, 
unacquainted  with  it.  He  may  possibly  act  a  bit 
strangely  at  first,  but  unless  he  is  particularly  bad- 
tempered  he  will  seldom  do  more.  If  a  beginner,  or 
mediocre  rider,  is  to  mount  a  horse  who  has  never 
previously  carried  a  side-saddle,  it  might  be  wise  as 
an  added  precaution  to  have  a  groom  wear  a  blanket 
or  rug  around  his  legs  and  ride  the  animal  for  a  few 
moments,  so  as  to  accustom  him  to  the  skirt,  and  to 
the  raising  of  the  rider's  right  leg  when  putting  it 
over  the  pommel  in  mounting.  This  precaution,  how- 
ever, is  unnecessary  in  most  cases. 

(4)  The  idea  that  a  woman  riding  a  side-saddle  runs 
more  danger  of  being  dragged,  in  case  she  is  thrown, 
than  she  would  if  she  were  in  a  cross-saddle,  is  also  a 
charge,  the  origin  of  which  can  be  traced  to  the  days 
when  women  wore  fuller  habits,  or  even  so-called 
''patent-safety"  skirts ,  which,  in  nine  cases  out  of  ten, 


SIDE-SADDLE  VS.   CROSS-SADDLE       79 

caught  on  the  pommels.  With  the  modern  full  apron 
skirt,  and  the  modern  safety-bar  stirrup,  the  danger 
of  dragging  is  reduced  to  a  minimum,  and  is  no  greater 
than  that  which  a  man  runs  in  a  cross-saddle.  More- 
over, as  a  woman  in  a  side-saddle  has  a  surer  seat  than 
a  woman,  or  even  a  man,  in  a  cross-saddle,  and  is 
therefore  less  apt  to  be  thrown,  I  believe  that  the 
danger  of  being  dragged  is  really  less,  rather  than  more. 
So  much  for  the  first  four  objections.  The  next  four 
charges  are,  perhaps,  not  so  easily  refuted. 

(5)  It  is  true  that  a  woman  camiot  mount  as  easily 
and  quickly  as  a  man.  But  with  a  fairly  quiet  horse 
it  is  well  within  the  range  of  possible  achievements  for 
a  woman,  of  average  height,  to  mount  to  a  side-saddle 
unassisted.  We  are,  however,  willing  to  grant  that  it 
is  no  easy  matter,  and  one  not  likely  to  be  attempted 
except  at  a  pinch.  She  can,  nevertheless,  dismount 
quite  as  easily  from  a  side-saddle  as  from  a  cross- 
saddle,  and  any  assistance  that  may  be  given  her  is 
usually  merely  a  form,  unless  she  is  very  stout  or  aged. 

(6)  Likewise  we  are  willing  to  admit  that  it  may  be 
a  trifle  more  difficult  for  a  woman  on  a  side-saddle 
to  drop  her  hands  to  a  horse,  as  she  has  to  lean  pretty 
far  forward  even  to  keep  them  as  low  as  her  knee; 
and  it  is  also  true  that  in  riding  a  green  horse,  a  re- 
fuser, or  a  mean  one,  a  woman  is  at  a  disadvantage 
in  not  having  a  leg  on  both  sides  of  the  animal. 

(7)  The  seventh  charge,  that  if  a  horse  falls  with  a 
woman  in  a  side-saddle  she  is  more  or  less  apt  to  be 
badly  smashed  up,  also  has  truth  in  it.  This  is  not 
due,  however,  so  much  to  the  presence  of  the  pom- 
mels, as  is  popularly  supposed,  but  rather  to  the  fact 
that  a  woman's  seat  on  a  side-saddle  is  so  very  firm 
that  when  the  horse  hits  the  fence  she  is  less  apt  to 


80  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

fly  over  his  head  and  so  get  clear  of  him  as  he  falls. 
In  fact,  the  pommels  often  act  as  a  sort  of  buffer,  and, 
providing  the  rider  is  still  sitting  close  in  the  saddle 
and  is  not  half  in  and  half  out,  hit  the  ground  first, 
thus  preventing  the  horse  from  crunching  the  rider's 
legs  with  his  weight.  I  have  had  several  falls  in  which 
my  horse  came  down  on  the  near  side,  and,  although  I 
remained  unhurt,  my  pommels  were  badly  bent,  prov- 
ing beyond  a  doubt  that,  as  I  was  under  the  horse 
when  he  fell,  the  pommels  must  have  broken  the  full 
force  of  the  blow.  It  is  astonishing  how  many  falls — 
and  bad  falls  too — a  woman  can  have  and  yet  come 
off  unhurt.  The  explanation  of  this  is,  possibly,  that 
a  woman's  horse,  if  properly  schooled,  usually  ap- 
proaches a  jump  leading  on  the  off  fore  leg,  and  there- 
fore if  he  hits,  he  does  so  with  that  leg,  and  conse- 
quently falls  on  his  right  side,  in  which  case,  unless  he 
is  unfortunate  enough  to  roll  over,  a  woman  is  no 
more  apt  to  be  hurt  than  a  man  under  similar  cir- 
cumstances. 

(8)  As  regards  polo,  I  also  agree  that,  owing  to  her 
position  in  the  side-saddle,  it  is  extremely  difficult  for 
a  woman  to  play  the  game  well.  She  can  hit  the  ball 
on  the  off  side  as  well  as  a  man,  and  ride  off  to  even 
better  advantage,  but  strokes  on  the  near  side  are 
extremely  difficult.  Polo  has  been  played  by  women 
in  side-saddles  in  England,  and  by  a  few  women  in 
this  country,  but  there  is  no  denying  that  the  side- 
saddle is  a  handicap  which  makes  it  impossible  for  a 
woman  riding  in  it  to  compete  against  men  or  women 
riding  astride.* 

*  There  is,  of  course,  no  reason  why  a  woman  who  rides  side-saddle 
cannot  change  to  the  cross-saddle  on  those  occasions  when  she  may 
wish  to  play  polo. 


SIDE-SADDLE  VS.   CROSS-SADDLE       81 

We  have,  then,  four  charges  against  the  side-saddle 
which  we  are  more  or  less  forced  to  admit  are  serious 
ones,  and  what  is  more,  just  ones.  That  none  of  these 
charges  are  applicable  to  mere  hacking  in  a  side- 
saddle, but  refer  only  to  jumping,  hunting,  and  polo, 
in  no  way  alters  the  fact  that  they  score  heavily  against 
the  general  use  of  the  side-saddle,  unless  we  are  able 
to  prove,  as  we  hope  to  do,  that  the  charges  against 
the  cross-saddle  are  equally  as  heavy,  and  that  the 
disadvantages  of  the  latter  counterbalance  the  advan- 
tages. 

(1)  A  woman  in  a  cross-saddle  has  a  very  insecure 
seat,  while  in  the  side-saddle  her  seat  is  even  firmer 
than  that  of  the  average  man,  a  fact  which  a  man  is 
usually  willing  to  admit.  Physically,  if  for  no  other 
reason,  a  woman  is  not  suited  to  ride  astride:  her  hips 
are  too  large,  her  thighs  too  thick  and  round,  and  her 
legs  too  short  from  the  knee  up;  at  the  same  time  she 
is  " cushioned"  too  high  to  look  well  or  to  sit  firmly 
in  a  cross-saddle.  A  man  who  rides  correctly,  only 
occasionally  applies  any  pressure  with  the  calves  of 
his  legs,  and  grips  largely  with  the  muscles  on  the 
inside  of  the  leg,  half-way  between  the  thigh  and  the 
knee.  In  the  average  woman  this  part  of  the  leg  is 
round  and  fleshy  instead  of  being  flat  and  hard. 
Furthermore,  most  women  are  knock-kneed,  a  dis- 
advantage over  the  " bowed"  or  bandy  legs  of  the 
average  man,  which  is  hard  to  overcome. 

To  say  that  all  Western  cow-girls,  who  of  course 
ride  astride,  have  miraculously  firm  seats,  is  no  argu- 
ment whatsoever,  for  the  Western  saddle  is  entirely 
different  from  the  English  saddle  used  by  us  in  the 
East.  The  Western  saddle  has  a  high  cantle,  which 
forms  a  back  rest,  and  a  dished  seat,  and  it  has  a  large 


82  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

pommel  in  front,  and  usually  huge  slipper  stirrups — 
all  features  totally  unsuited  to  hunting,  jumping,  or 
Eastern  riding.  Marvellous  as  the  cowboy  and  cow- 
girl are  in  their  own  setting,  they  would  be  hopelessly 
lost  in  an  English  saddle. 

The  woman  on  the  side-saddle  may  run  a  greater 
danger  of  being  hurt,  if  her  mount  falls  with  her,  but 
her  sister,  riding  astride,  has  the  equal  disadvantage 
of  having  ten  falls  to  her  one.  If  a  horse  refuses,  off 
she  goes,  and  if  he  pecks,  in  nine  cases  out  of  ten  she 
either  goes  over  his  head  or  has  so  far  lost  her  balance 
as  to  fly  up  on  the  horse's  ears,  thus  bringing  him 
down  altogether  and  turning  what  otherwise  would 
have  been  merely  a  hard  rap  into  a  fall.  This  is  true, 
not  only  of  the  poor  riders,  but  also  of  some  of  the 
very  best. 

Moreover,  the  most  important  advantage  the  side- 
saddle rider  has  over  the  cross-saddle  rider,  is  that, 
owing  to  her  far  firmer  seat,  she  is  apt  to  have  superior 
hands.  This  may  account  for  the  fact  that,  whereas 
in  theory  she  is  at  a  disadvantage  in  riding  a  refuser, 
or  a  mean  one,  in  practice  she  seems  to  do  pretty  well — 
in  most  cases  as  well  as  the  woman  astride.  At  all 
events,  the  women  of  England,  who  nearly  all  still  ride 
side-saddle,  hunt  as  hard  as  the  men  do,  and  are  as 
often  "in  at  the  death."  I  do  not  think  that  I  am 
far  wrong  when  I  say  that  the  American  woman  in  her 
much-vaunted  cross-saddle  would  have  her  work  cut 
out  for  her  if  she  attempted  to  follow  the  average 
English  woman  across  Leicestershire. 

So  much  for  the  practical  side  of  the  matter.  When 
it  comes  to  appearances,  even  a  blind  man  wouldn't 
argue  the  point !  There  are  few  places  where  a  grace- 
ful, well  turned-out  woman  looks  better,  or  appeals 


SIDE-SADDLE  VS.  CROSS-SADDLE       83 

more  to  the  masculine  eye,  than  in  a  side-saddle,  and 
there  are  few  places  where  the  same  woman  looks  less 
graceful,  less  chic,  or  less  feminine  than  when  she  is 
attired  in  breeches  and  boots  astride  of  a  cross-saddle. 
Young,  slight,  girlish  figures  may  look  fairly  well  in  a 
cross-saddle,  but  these  same  figures  when  they  have 
grown  older  and  have  become  rounder  and  fatter,  not 
only  will  look  dreadfully  vulgar,  but  each  year  they 
will  become  more  and  more  insecure  as  their  thighs 
round  out.  Mrs.  Thomas  Hitchcock  is  one  of  the 
few  older  women  who  look  well,  and  ride  well  astride, 
but  her  figure  has  always  maintained  its  boyish  ap- 
pearance, and  she  is  the  exception  that  proves  the  rule. 

Fat  does  not  look  well  on  either  a  side-saddle  or  a 
cross-saddle,  but  a  large,  portly,  maironly  woman 
may  still  ride  side-saddle  with  a  fair  degree  of  modesty, 
dignity,  and  security,  while  on  a  cross-saddle  she  would 
be  a  laughing-stock.  The  young  slips  of  girls,  who 
now  appear  so  attractive  in  their  trim  little  breeches 
and  boots,  are  no  standard  to  go  by;  wait  until  they 
are  fair,  fat,  and  forty,  and  watch  how  many  of  them 
will  have  given  up  riding  because  they  look  so  queer, 
while  their  more  "old-fashioned"  sisters  will  be  able 
to  maintain  their  enjoyment  in  the  sport  until  extreme 
old  age. 

It  might  perhaps  be  argued  that  appearances  should 
not  count  against  comfort  or  safety,  but  I,  for  one,  do 
not  think  that  there  is  a  great  enough  difference  in  the 
degree  of  safety  or  comfort  afforded  by  the  cross- 
saddle  over  the  side-saddle  to  warrant  our  disregard- 
ing looks  altogether.  We  women,  would  undoubtedly 
be  far  more  comfortable  in  trousers,  could  walk  and 
run  and  jump  on  street-cars  better,  but  nevertheless 
for  the  sake  of  looks,  and  looks  alone,  we  do  not  adopt 


84  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

them.  We  would  undoubtedly  be  more  sensibly 
clothed  if  we  did  not  run  around  in  low-necked  evening 
dresses  in  the  winter,  and  yet  who  among  us  would 
abandon  them  on  the  score  of  comfort  or  safety? 
Why,  therefore,  shouldn't  women  be  willing  to  submit 
to  the  few  very  slight  inconveniences  of  the  side- 
saddle in  order  to  look  graceful,  feminine,  and  lady- 
like, instead  of  like  a  vulgar,  badly  shaped  and  knock- 
kneed  man. 


CHAPTER  VII 
HINTS  ON  RIDING 

"Grace  is  the  result  of  forgotten  toil." 

— Geo.  McDonald. 

"There  is  a  great  gulf  between  the  amateur  and  the  artist  which  is 
never  crossed;  for  the  artist  is  the  steward  of  toil  that  he  may  become 
the  master  of  his  craft;  while  the  amateur,  by  evading  the  service 
forfeits  the  mastery." — Hamilton  Wright  Mabie. 

If  you  travel  in  the  Orient,  or  in  our  Western  States, 
it  will  not  be  long  before  you  become  duly  convinced 
that  the  best  natural  riders  the  world  over,  regardless 
of  their  particular  and  peculiar  styles  of  riding,  are 
those  men,  those  tribes  or  nations,  who,  from  their 
youth  up,  have  been  the  companions  of  the  horse. 
Nevertheless,  while  the  rider  who,  as  a  child,  has 
learned  the  trick  of  balancing  on  a  bareback  pony  is, 
no  doubt,  at  a  great  advantage,  age  is  not  necessarily 
an  entire  bar  to  learning.  I  remember  one  lady  who 
did  not  take  it  up  until  fifty,  and  another  who  had 
never  jumped  a  horse  until  she  was  fifty-four,  and 
now  actually  hunts  like  blazes. 

Above  all,  it  must  be  remembered  that  the  best 
teaching  in  the  world,  and  all  the  knowledge  gained 
from  reading  or  hearsay,  will  be  a  useless  accumula- 
tion of  facts  unless  one  is  also  able  to  put  them  into 
practical  use.  An  ounce  of  practice  is  indeed  worth 
many  a  pound  of  theory,  for  it  is  practice  alone  that 
makes  perfect.  In  riding,  as  in  everything  else  in  life, 
you  cannot  become  an  expert  by  merely  reading,  or 
even  by  occasional  spurts  of  application.  It  is  impos- 
sible to  perfect  yourself  by  isolated  efforts  at  improve- 

85 


86  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

ment,  for  to  become  and  remain  a  really  good  rider 
requires  constant  practice  and  constant  watchfulness 
against  faults  and  slipshod  ways.  Perfection  in  any 
line  is  "not  built  up  by  single  efforts  .  .  .  but  by  the 
repetition  of  small  acts  in  every  day  experiences." 

Of  all  the  qualities  that  go  to  make  up  a  fine  rider, 
a  good  seat  is,  perhaps,  the  most  important,  for  on  it 
depend  hands,  grace,  safety,  and  much  of  all  that 
makes  up  horsemanship. 

The  perfect  seat,  for  either  man  or  woman,  is  that 
which  combines  the  maximum  amount  of  security  and 
grace  with  the  minimum  amount  of  fatigue  to  either 
horse  or  rider.  Grace  must  be  present  in  the  ideal 
seat  as  well  as  security,  for  we  cannot  afford  to  banish 
beauty  and  grace  from  our  riding  or  our  sports  any 
more  than  from  any  other  branch  of  life.  Correct 
form  is  more  than  a  mere  fad — it  is  adhering  as  closely 
as  possible  to  the  ideal  seat. 

As  both  security  and  grace  depend  largely  on  the 
proper  position  assumed  in  the  saddle,  this  must,  of 
necessity,  be  our  first  consideration. 

The  proper  position  for  a  side-saddle  rider,  which 
remains  the  same  at  any  gait  except  for  a  slight  supple 
movement  above  the  waist,  is  as  follows:  She  should 
sit  squarely  and  firmly  in  the  saddle,  very  much  in  the 
same  easy  and  graceful  position  that  she  might  seat 
herself  sidewise  on  a  sofa,  with  the  exception  that  her 
shoulders  must  be  at  right  angles  to  the  horse's  ears. 
In  order  to  assume  this  perfectly  square  seat  her  right 
thigh  should  be  parallel  with  the  horse's  back-bone.  Very 
few  instructors  seem  to  be  aware  of  this  important 
detail,  and  merely  urge  their  pupils  to  sit  squarely, 
which  they  do  by  twisting  around  from  the  waist  up,  a 
position  which  is  extremely  fatiguing,  unnatural,  and 


- 
03 


c 


c 
o 


e 
3 


G 

J3 


2     -      - 


C     5 
o- 

*'■;■ 


££  - 

_-  m 

=  t  — 

c—  o 

•-  :.  -_ 

5 —  c 

-•  =  = 

—     3 


•7  /.  § 


j  fee 


«■§§ 

ft    - 


ft    £ 

d  8  « 

B   Ph 


Li 

- 
— 


- 


- 


HINTS  ON   RIDING  87 

is  largely  responsible  for  the  charge  that  a  side-saddle 
produces  enlargement  of  one  hip. 

The  entire  body  above  the  waist  should  be  supple 
and  at  ease;  the  rider  should  be  able  to  sway  slightly 
with  the  horse's  motion  at  a  canter,  and  should  be 
able  to  lean  well  forward  at  a  gallop  or  over  a  jump. 
She  should  also  be  able  to  bend  backward  so  that  her 
head  touches  the  animal's  rump,  or  bend  sidewise,  so 
as  to  be  able  to  touch  her  toes  without  in  any  way 
altering  the  uniform  position  of  her  legs.  This  bal- 
ance and  grace  must  be  obtained  entirely  from  the 
hip  joints,  and  the  indefinable  swing  and  rhythm 
which  mark  a  good  rider  is  of  the  same  type  as  that 
which  characterizes  a  good  dancer  or  an  expert  skater. 

On  the  other  hand,  at  no  time  should  suppleness 
degenerate  into  sloppiness  or  limpness.  At  all  times 
the  back,  though  supple  and  by  no  means  stiff  or  rigid, 
should,  nevertheless,  be  quite  erect  and  should  not 
appear  to  collapse  at  every  movement  of  the  horse. 

Although,  at  a  trot,  the  line  which  is  almost  per- 
pendicular is  the  most  correct,  it  is  preferable  to  lean 
slightly  forward  rather  than  to  lean  back.  Leaning 
too  far  forward  at  the  trot  is  a  failing  which  many 
hunting  women  are  apt  to  fall  into,  owing  to  the 
amount  of  jumping  which  they  do  and  to  the  long 
hours  which  they  remain  in  the  saddle  at  a  gallop. 
When  the  habit  is  thus  naturally  acquired,  it  is  at 
least  unobjectionable,  but  it  should  never  be  as- 
sumed artificially,  as  is  sometimes  done,  in  order  to 
appear  like  a  hunting  woman.  In  fact  any  style  of 
riding,  even  one  which  is  bad  form,  if  natural  and  un- 
conscious, is  preferable  to  affectation  or  "pose." 

The  head  should  be  held  in  a  natural  and  easy  posi- 
tion, as  if  when  walking  on  foot,  and  should  not  move 


88  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

jerkily  or  stiffly  to  and  fro,  nor  yet  be  held  haughtily 
in  the  air  as  if  the  rider  were  entirely  unconcerned  as 
to  how  her  horse  is  proceeding.  Crocking  the  head 
forward,  as  if  one  were  suffering  from  a  broken  neck, 
is  a  bad  habit  acquired  by  many  of  our  best  show- 
riders,  and  presumably  is  caused  by  bending  forward 
too  much,  to  observe  closely  the  gaits  of  their  mounts. 

The  shoulders  should  be  held  easily  and  fairly  well 
back,  and  quite  level  (the  right  one  is  apt  to  be  in- 
clined a  little  higher  than  the  left),  and  the  elbows 
should  be  held  naturally  at  the  sides,  neither  pulled  in, 
as  if  cramped,  nor  poked  out  affectedly  at  right  angles, 
nor  yet  flapping  up  and  down  with  each  motion  of  the 
horse. 

A  good  rider  should  rest  most  of  her  weight  in  the 
saddle  on  the  right  thigh  instead  of  on  the  stirrup  foot. 
It  is  the  preponderance  of  weight  on  the  near  side, 
which,  in  the  case  of  poor  riders,  causes  the  saddle  to 
drag  down  and  rub  the  horse's  withers  or  back-bone, 
and  thus  gives  rise  to  the  idea  that  all  side-saddles 
tend  to  give  horses  a  sore  back. 

The  next  thing  to  note  is  that  the  rider  should  sit 
well  into  the  saddle,  pressing  the  right  leg  down  from 
the  hip  to  the  knee,  otherwise,  were  she  on  accasion 
to  grip  the  pommel,  there  would  be  a  space  between  it 
and  her  knee  which  would  render  her  seat  most 
insecure. 

The  rider's  right  leg  should  hang  easily  over  the 
pommel  (see  illustration,  Figs.  1  and  2)  and  flat  against 
the  flap  of  the  saddle,  in  the  position  that  it  assumes 
most  naturally.  It  should  neither  be  poked  out  in  front 
(see  illustration,  Fig.  3),  which  is  a  very  common  fault 
among  beginners,  and  which  renders  the  seat  insecure 
and  makes  the  habit  ride  up,  nor  should  it  be  hooked 


FlG.l 

Correct  position  in  broad- 
pommelled  hunting  saddle 


Fig. 2 

Correct  position  In  narrow- 
pommelled  saddle 


Fio.3 


Incorrect  position  in  broad- 
pommelled  hunting  saddle 


FlG.4- 


Incorrect  position  in  nar- 
row-pommelled saddle 


90  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

back  in  a  cramped  style  so  that  the  calf  of  the  leg  is 
brought  around  the  upper  crutch  and  the  right  leg 
touches,  or  almost  touches,  the  left.  (See  illustration, 
Fig.  4.)  This  latter  position  is  not  only  fatiguing,  but  is 
apt  to  cause  rubbing  under  the  right  knee,  where  it 
squeezes  the  saddle.  To  say  nothing  of  the  fact  that 
with  this  seat  the  body  is  brought  too  far  forward,  and  it 
predisposes  the  rider  to  fall  over  the  off  shoulder  of  the 
horse  should  her  mount  swerve  suddenly  to  the  left. 
The  left  leg  should  hang  perpendicularly  from  the 
knee  to  the  ankle,  but  whether  the  knee  is  much  or 
little  bent  depends,  in  a  woman's  saddle  as  in  a  man's, 
entirely  on  the  length  of  the  leather. 

This  brings  us  to  the  much-mooted  question  as  to 
whether  it  is  best  to  ride  by  grip,  by  balance,  or  by  a 
combination  of  both.  Some  excellent  horsemen  and 
horsewomen  recommend  using  very  long  leathers  and 
riding  entirely  by  balance;  others  advocate  using  short 
leathers  and  maintaining  the  seat  by  grip.  I  per- 
sonally am  in  favor  of  the  happy  medium — riding  by 
the  proper  distribution  of  balance,  plus  grip.  Balance 
above  the  waist,  occasional  grip  below. 

Those  persons  claiming  that  the  " balance"  seat, 
pure  and  simple,  is  not  only  the  most  graceful,  but  also 
the  most  secure,  are  apt  to  cite  as  an  illustration  of 
their  contention  the  marvellous  feats  of  the  Western 
cowboy,  who  rides  with  extraordinarily  long  leathers 
and  yet  is  able  to  sit  an  outlaw  bucking  bronco  while 
holding  a  playing-card  between  his  knees  and  the  sad- 
dle. Granted  that  this  is  true,  nevertheless,  the  de- 
duction that  is  drawn  from  it  is  wrong.  To  begin  with, 
the  cowboy  does  not  ride  entirely  by  balance,  he  grips, 
as  need  may  arise,  and  his  grip  is  at  times  so  power- 
ful that  he  is  able  to  make  a  horse  squeal  by  the  pres- 


HINTS  ON  RIDING  91 

sure.  Furthermore,  and  this  is  more  to  the  point,  it 
is  as  illogical  to  use  the  proficiency  of  the  cowboy  as 
an  argument  for  the  "long  leather"  seat,  as  it  would  be 
to  use  the  expertness  of  the  Cossack  as  an  illustration 
of  the  efficiency  of  the  " short  leather"  seat.  The  Cos- 
sacks, perched  absurdly  high  on  their  roll  of  blankets, 
have  their  stirrups  hung  so  as  to  bring  their  toes  back 
on  a  line  under  their  ears;  their  knees  are  completely 
bent,  and  they  grip  with  their  calves  and  their  heels 
instead  of  with  their  knees,  and  yet,  although  they  do 
all  the  very  things  that  we  consider  incorrect  they 
are  able  to  leap  from  one  horse  to  another  at  full 
speed,  mount  and  dismount  at  a  gallop,  pick  up  objects 
from  the  ground,  and  are  unequalled  as  a  semi-civilized 
cavalry.  Or  take,  for  example,  the  Arabs,  the  Bedouins, 
or  Spahis,  who  remain  incredibly  long  hours  in  the  sad- 
dle, and  seem  part  and  parcel  of  the  animals  they  ride, 
and  yet  they,  too,  use  extraordinarily  short  leathers. 
To  give  other  illustrations  of  a  seat  totally  different 
from  that  of  the  cowboy,  and  yet  equally  secure,  look 
at  our  old-time  Indians,  who  rode  with  their  legs  flat 
back  against  their  animals'  sides.  They  could  enter 
a  seething  mass  of  stampeding  buffaloes  and  pick  up 
a  dying  warrior  without  slackening  speed. 

In  fact,  be  it  in  the  Occident  or  the  Orient,  we  find 
that  many  of  the  great  natural  riders  of  the  world,  un- 
surpassed in  their  expertness  on  a  horse,  nevertheless 
"smash  to  atoms  every  commandment  in  the  decalogue 
of  modern  equitations."  It  is  just  barely  possible  that 
were  the  Cossack,  the  cowboy,  or  the  Arab  to  devote 
to  a  seat  more  like  our  modern  one  the  same  amount 
of  time  and  energy  that  he  does  in  learning  his  own, 
he  might  produce  even  better  results,  but  I  doubt  it. 
This  only  goes  to  show,  not  that  the  principles  of 


92  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

modern  riding  are  at  fault,  but  that  different  styles 
and  types  of  seats  are  best  adapted  to  the  varying 
needs  of  different  conditions.  It  is  as  foolish  to  quote 
the  method  of  the  Western  cowboy  as  being  applicable 
for  use  in  an  English  saddle  as  it  is  to  cite  the  style 
adopted  by  the  men  of  the  Orient. 

The  Western  saddle,  with  its  high  cantle  and  horn 
pommel,  is  eminently  suited  to  the  work  of  lassoing 
or  roping  steers,  but  it  is  wholly  unadapted,  uncom- 
fortable, and  dangerous  to  ride  in  over  a  country. 
The  cowboy  can  undoubtedly  remain  in  his  saddle 
for  days  on  end  without  fatigue;  he  undeniably  has  a 
wonderfully  natural  and  graceful  seat,  and  he  most 
certainly  can  ride  horses  that  no  other  man  on  earth 
could  stay  on  for  five  minutes,  but  he  cannot  ride  over 
jumps,*  and  he  knows  nothing  about  the  accomplish- 
ments of  finished  horsemanship,  and  would  cut  as 
sorry  a  figure  in  an  English  saddle  as  we  would  in  his. 
It  is  clearly  a  case  of  the  squirrel  who,  it  will  be  re- 
membered, said  to  the  mountain: 

"Talents  differ.     All  is  well  and  wisely  put. 
If  I  cannot  carry  forests  on  my  back 
Neither  can  you  crack  a  nut." 

The  proof  of  the  fact  that,  although  long  leathers 
are  peculiarly  well  adapted  to  the  cowboy's  Western 
saddle,  they  are  not,  per  se,  conducive  to  a  secure  or 
graceful  seat  when  used  on  an  English  saddle,  is  evi- 
denced by  the  performances  of  the  U.  S.  cavalry  over 
the  jumps.  Far  be  it  from  me  to  deny  that  in  long- 
distance riding  and  endurance  our  cavalry  may  be 

*  The  force  exercised  by  a  horse  bucking  is  an  upward  action  instead 
of  a  forward  or  lateral  action,  as  it  would  be  were  the  animal  jumping. 
Sitting  a  buck  is  therefore,  mechanica'ly  quite  different  from  sitting 
over  a  jump. 


HINTS  ON  RIDING  93 

unsurpassed,  which  I  suppose,  from  a  military  point 
of  view,  is  of  the  greatest  importance,  but  for  finish 
in  riding  on  the  flat,  or  performing  over  the  jumps, 
we  most  certainly  do  not  compare  favorably  with  the 
English,  French,  and  Belgian  cavalry,  all  of  whom  ride 
with  much  shorter  leathers. 

Moreover,  whatever  might  be  said  about  the  merits 
or  demerits  of  long  or  short  leathers  when  used  by  a 
man;  on  a  woman's  saddle  they  must  be  judged  sepa- 
rately and  by  themselves.  Since  it  is  illogical  to  use 
the  cowboy's  seat  and  saddle  as  an  argument  in  favor 
of  long  leathers,  inasmuch  as  it  doesn't  take  into 
account  the  difference  of  conditions,  requirements,  and 
shapes  of  the  saddle,  how  much  more  illogical  is  it  to 
use  the  cowboy,  or  any  other  similar  argument,  in 
reference  to  the  length  of  leathers  on  a  woman's  side- 
saddle, which  bears  no  possible  resemblance  to  any 
other  known  saddle.  Clearly,  the  case  must  be  judged 
solely  by  a  woman's  particular  needs. 

It  goes  without  saying  that  were  a  woman  to  ride 
with  an  excessively  short  leather  and  maintain  her  seat 
by  grip  alone,  she  would  be  bound  to  be  placed  in  a 
most  awkward  and  cramped  style.  She  would  be  apt 
to  push  her  right  shoulder  forward  and  be  thrown  too 
far  forward  at  the  trot,  when  her  body  ought  to  be  in  a 
perpendicular  line.  Whereas,  at  the  gallop  or  over  the 
jumps,  where  she  ought  to  be  well  forward,  she  would 
be  unable  to  assume  this  position.  Moreover,  owing 
to  the  fatigue  that  such  a  seat  would  entail,  it  would 
eventually  render  her  insecure  in  the  saddle  because 
of  the  tiring  of  the  muscles.  To  go  to  the  other  ex- 
treme, however,  and  lengthen  one's  leather  so  as  to 
be  riding  entirely  by  balance,  though  it  may  be  prefer- 
able, is  equally  foolish.     In  doing  so  a  woman  is  un- 


94  HACKS  AND   HUNTERS 

able  to  rise  snappily  and  easily  to  the  trot,  inasmuch  as 
she  is  deprived  of  the  action  of  the  knee  and  the  up- 
ward pressure  of  the  ankle  joint,  and  is,  therefore,  apt 
to  push  forward  on  the  stirrup  at  each  rise,  producing 
an  ugly  pendulum-like  swinging  of  the  left  leg.  This 
action  not  only  fatigues  the  horse  but  is  likely  to  pull 
the  saddle  down  on  the  near  side  and  give  him  a  sore 
back.  Moreover,  and  this  is  even  more  to  the  point, 
by  using  too  long  a  leather  she  deprives  herself  of  the 
chief  support  afforded  by  the  leaping  head,  and  thus 
weakens  her  grip.  No  one  is  a  firmer  believer  than  I 
in  the  advantages  to  be  derived  from  learning  to  ride 
bareback,  and  of  acquiring  the  balancing  trick,  but  it 
goes  without  saying  that  for  practical  work  the 
saddle  possesses  a  distinct  superiority  over  the  bare- 
back seat  in  nearly  every  way,  and  in  view  of  this  fact 
it  seems  foolish  to  throw  away  the  advantages  of  the 
saddle.  It  may  be  all  very  well  to  prate  about  riding 
entirely  by  balance,  but  I  am  firmly  convinced  that 
those  riders  who  claim  they  do,  simply  don't  realize 
that  in  actual  practice  they  do  occasionally  grip.  How 
many  women,  for  instance,  would  be  willing,  in  hunt- 
ing, to  dispense  with  the  leaping  head  altogether,  and 
yet  if  they  never  press  against  it,  as  they  claim,  of 
what  use  is  it? 

In  " Riding  Recollections"  Whyte  Melville  cleverly 
settles  the  question  when  he  says:  "Some  people  tell 
you  they  ride  by  balance,  others  by  grip.  I  think  a 
man  might  as  well  say  he  played  the  fiddle  by  'finger' 
or  by  'ear.'  Surely  in  either  case  a  combination  of 
both  is  required  to  sustain  the  performance  with  har- 
mony and  success.  The  grip  preserves  the  balance, 
which  in  turn  prevents  the  grip  becoming  irksome. 
To  depend  on  the  one  alone  is  to  come  home  very  often 


HINTS  ON  RIDING  95 

with  a  dirty  coat,  to  cling  wholly  by  the  other  is  to 
court  as  much  fatigue  in  a  day  as  ought  to  serve  for  a 
week.  .  .  .  Grace  is,  after  all,  but  the  result  of  re- 
pressed strength.  The  loose  and  easy  seat  that  seems 
to  sway  so  carelessly  with  every  motion,  can  tighten 
itself  by  instinct  to  the  compression  of  a  vice,  and  the 
'prettiest'  rider,  as  they  say  in  Ireland,  is  probably 
the  one  whom  a  kicker  or  buck- jumper  would  find  the 
most  difficult  to  dislodge." 

To  obtain  the  ideal  combination  of  suppleness  and 
relaxed  muscles  above  the  waist,  with  occasional  grip 
below  the  waist,  I  personally  am  quite  convinced  that 
the  medium  length  of  leather  is  the  correct  one,  for 
either  man  or  woman.  I  do  not  recommend  this  sim- 
ply because  it  is  a  style  that  I  affect  myself,  for  no  in- 
telligent horseman  or  horsewoman  would  advocate  a 
method  merely  because  it  is  their  own.  I  recommend 
it  because  it  is  a  method  that  is  good  both  in  theory 
and  in  practice. 

In  a  side-saddle  this  happy  combination  of  balance 
and  grip  is  best  achieved  by  a  leather  just  long  enough 
to  allow  putting  the  flat  of  one's  hand  between  the 
left  knee  and  the  leaping  head.*  (See  illustration, 
Fig.  1.)  For  quiet  riding  about,  or  for  showing  a 
hack,  it  may,  if  desired,  be  lengthened  as  many  holes 
as  will  best  suit  the  animal's  gaitf  (see  illustration, 
Fig.  2);  but  for  general  use — for  hunting,  jumping,  or 
for  riding  rough  horses — the  medium  length  is  the  best. 

*  The  correct  length  of  the  leather  should  always  be  gauged  by  this 
relation  of  the  rider's  leg  to  the  leaping  head,  and  not  by  any  fixed  "hole" 
in  the  leather.  For,  on  a  wide-girthed  horse,  a  leather  in  exactly  the 
same  hole  would,  in  reality,  be  shorter  than  the  same  leather  on  a 
narrow-girthed  horse. 

t  As  a  general  rule  a  horse  with  a  quick,  trappy  gait  does  not  require 
as  short  a  leather  in  order  to  rise  comfortably  as  an  animal  with  a 
long  stride. 


96  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

It  is  quite  sufficiently  long  to  permit  the  rider's  leg 
comfortably  to  clear  the  leaping  head  when  rising  to  a 
trot,  and  yet  were  the  horse  to  make  any  movement 
beyond  the  point  at  which  natural  balance  could  main- 
tain the  seat,  the  leaping  head  can  be  effectively  and 
instantly  gripped  at  a  point  about  four  or  five  inches 
above  the  knee  by  a  supple  movement  of  the  ankle 
alone,  which  pushes  the  thigh  tightly  against  it.  The 
downward  pressure  of  the  foot  against  the  stirrup- 
iron  assists  in  the  upward  pressure  in  such  a  way  that 
the  rider  is  figuratively  clamped  into  the  saddle  in  a 
manner  impossible  with  a  long  leather.  For  with  the 
latter  the  leg,  in  order  to  press  against  the  leaping 
head,  has  to  relinquish  its  downward  pressure  against 
the  iron,  in  which  case  the  action  is  bound  to  be 
feebler  than  in  the  former.  In  assisting  the  grip  of 
the  left  leg,  the  right  knee  and  leg  should  press  down- 
ward and  laterally  against  the  saddle  and  the  horse's 
shoulder,  but  it  should  not  be  hooked  back  around 
the  pommel. 

I  realize  that  in  advocating  a  powerful  grip  on  the 
leaping  head,  in  case  of  an  emergency,  I  am  putting 
myself  in  direct  opposition  to  several  eminent  women 
riders,  who  jump,  hunt,  and  ride  on  rough  horses  with 
extraordinarily  long  leathers,  claiming  that  they  are 
better  able  to  slide  up  on  to  a  horse's  neck  in  this  way 
and  maintain  their  pressure  against  the  leaping  head 
at  a  point  farther  up  the  thigh  and  without  the  assist- 
ance of  the  downward  pressure  on  the  iron.  I  fail  to 
see,  however,  how  such  a  grip  can  ever  be  as  secure. 
as  the  one  obtained  by  combined  knee  and  ankle  pres- 
sure. Moreover,  the  ability  to  crawl  up  on  to  a  horse's 
neck  like  a  monkey,  affected  by  some  of  our  cross- 
saddle  lady  riders,  is  not  at  all  necessary.     It  goes 


HINTS  ON  RIDING  97 

without  saying  that  a  woman  should  lean  well  forward 
over  a  jump,  but  she  can  lean  quite  as  far  forward  as 
is  necessary  and  graceful  without  renouncing  the  se- 
curity afforded  by  a  reasonably  short  leather.  It  will 
be  seen  in  illustration  facing  page  70  that  I  could 
scarcely  be  farther  forward  in  the  saddle  without  look- 
ing extremely  ungainly,  and  yet  I  am  riding  at  the 
length  of  leather  I  have  just  advocated.  Undoubted- 
ly, there  are  many  women  who  accomplish  astonish- 
ing results  with  very  long  leathers,  and  some  with 
very  short,  but  I  venture  to  say  that  had  the  same 
amount  of  labor,  patience,  and  skill  been  used  on  a 
length  more  suited  to  the  work  in  hand  even  better 
results  might  have  been  accomplished. 

Whatever  may  be  the  controversies  regarding  the 
matter  on  a  man's  saddle,  on  a  side-saddle  it  is  prefer- 
able that  the  stirrup-iron  be  held  on  the  ball  of  the 
foot,  even  when  jumping  or  hunting.  In  this  position 
not  only  is  there  less  danger  of  the  foot  remaining 
wedged  in  the  iron  in  case  of  an  accident,  but  also  it 
is  evident  that  the  efficacy  of  the  rider's  grip,  performed 
as  already  described  by  the  ankle  joint,  is  destroyed 
if  the  foot  is  put  "home."  For  in  the  latter  position 
the  ankle  joint  can  have  no  "play." 

The  left  foot  should  always  be  held  as  nearly  parallel 
to  the  horse's  side  as  is  consistent  with  ease,  and  the 
heel  should  be  held  a  little  away  from  the  animal. 
(See  illustration,  Figs.  1  and  2.)  If  the  foot  is  not  ab- 
solutely level,  the  heel,  rather  than  the  toe,  should  be 
depressed  slightly.  In  gripping  to  any  extent,  the 
foot  may  be  carried  away  from  the  horse's  side,  and 
pressure  thereby  applied  more  to  the  inner  than  the 
outer  side  of  the  iron,  in  which  position  the  knee  is 
best  able  to  adhere  to  the  saddle  flap. 


98  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

There  is  nothing  prettier  than  a  well-executed  trot, 
and  nothing  more  deplorable  than  a  bad  one.  Rising 
to  the  trot  is  called  by  the  French  le  trot  Anglaise,  but 
strangely  enough  the  majority  of  Englishwomen  do 
not  rise  as  gracefully  to  the  trot  as  might  be  expected, 
considering  what  wonderful  horsewomen  they  are  on 
the  whole. 

Many  hard-riding,  cross-country  English  and  Irish 
women  are  unable  to  execute  a  graceful  trot  at  all, 
and  I  venture  to  say  that  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  here 
in  America  we  have  only  one  good  rider  to  their  ten, 
you  will,  nevertheless,  see  more  women  rising  to  a 
trot  neatly  and  gracefully  in  Madison  Square  Garden 
than  at  Olympia  or  in  Hyde  Park. 

This  is,  of  course,  due  to  the  fact  that  in  England 
the  trot  is  but  sparingly  indulged  in,  and  also  because 
so  many  English  and  Irish  women  sit  one  step  and  rise 
on  the  alternate  one,  which,  although  it  may  look  un- 
graceful, is  less  fatiguing  when  once  learned,  and  better 
adapted  to  long  jogs  from  covert  at  a  hound  trot. 

To  rise  to  the  trot  really  well,  the  right  leg  as  well  as 
the  left  should  remain  in  exactly  the  same  position  as 
when  at  a  standstill  or  at  a  walk,  and  should  not  swing 
to  and  fro  like  a  pendulum.  In  fact,  in  all  the  three 
gaits  the  legs  should  always  remain  in  identically  the 
same  position. 

The  left  leg  of  a  woman  in  a  side-saddle  hangs  and 
acts  in  a  manner  similar  to  the  way  it  would  were  she 
riding  cross-saddle.  I  noticed  this  little  fact  whenever 
I,  on  rare  occasion,  rode  cross-saddle;  that  whereas 
my  right  leg  felt  clumsy  and  awkward,  my  left  leg  had 
so  long  been  accustomed  to  being  held  in  just  this 
same  position  that  it  at  once  felt  quite  at  home. 

As  already  stated,  the  rider's  weight  in  the  saddle 


HINTS  ON   RIDING  99 

should  be  almost  entirely  on  her  right  thigh,  and  the 
rise  at  the  trot  should  come  chiefly  from  the  muscles 
of  the  right  thigh  and  knee,  and  but  little  from  the 
stirrup  foot.  The  upward  push  of  the  ankle  joint  on  the 
stirrup-iron  is,  naturally,  of  some  assistance  in  rising, 
and  renders  the  motion  less  fatiguing  than  it  would 
otherwise  be,  but  a  good  rider  should  be  able  to  rise 
passably  well  without  any  iron.  In  rising,  the  right 
knee  must  not  slide  up  and  down  as  one  so  often  sees. 
The  test  of  a  really  good  rider  should  be  the  ability  to 
balance  a  fifty-cent  piece  on  the  right  knee  when  rising 
at  a  trot.  At  first,  in  order  to  keep  the  knee  quiet, 
one  may,  perhaps,  have  to  exert  a  steady  pressure 
against  the  inner  side  of  the  upper  crutch  with  the 
right  leg,  but  after  a  while  as  the  rider  finds  herself 
automatically  keeping  her  knee  motionless  when  rising, 
this  pressure  may  be  diminished. 

When  rising  to  a  trot  the  rider's  body  is  naturally 
in  the  air  when  one  particular  set  of  the  horse's  legs 
are  raised  (either  the  near  fore  and  off  hind  legs,  or 
the  off  fore  and  near  hind  legs),  and  the  body  is  in  the 
saddle  when  the  opposite  pair  are  lifted.  In  a  man's 
saddle  it  makes  no  difference  which  set  of  legs  one 
rises  to  and  which  set  one  sits  to,  although  most  riders 
acquire  the  habit  of  rising  on  the  same  respective  legs. 
It  is  better,  however,  for  a  man  to  alternate  the  manner 
of  rising  occasionally,  for  it  stands  to  reason  that  if  the 
rider  never  varies  in  his  manner  of  rising,  the  horse  will 
always  be  obliged  to  use  the  same  muscles  to  throw 
him  up,  and  always  have  the  strain  on  the  same  leg, 
and  in  consequence  will  sometimes  not  trot  quite 
"level.'  In  long-distance  riding,  the  importance  of 
changing  the  set  of  legs  on  which  the  rider  rises,  in 
order  to  rest  the  horse,  is  well  recognized. 


100  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

In  a  side-saddle,  however,  this  resting  of  the  horse 
is  not  accomplished  without  a  marked  disadvantage 
to  the  rider.  For  a  side-saddle  rider  rises  far  more 
gracefully  and  neatly  when  the  off  fore  leg  and  near 
hind  leg  are  on  the  ground,  than  when  the  reverse  is 
true.*  Mechanically  the  reason  for  this  is  that,  owing 
to  the  rider's  position  in  the  saddle,  if  she  rises  from  the 
impetus  received  by  the  off  hind  leg  striking  the  ground, 
she  will  be  pushed  outward  and  to  the  left,  and  go  up 
and  down  in  a  more  or  less  churning  motion,  whereas, 
if  she  waits  for  the  near  hind  leg  to  push  her  up, 
her  left  shoulder  will  be  pushed  over  to  the  right,  thus 
counteracting  any  downward  tendency  she  might  have 
toward  the  other  side,  and  she  will  probably  rise  up 
and  down  in  a  straight  line.f  Rising  on  the  wrong 
leg  (commonly  spoken  of  as  being  "out  of  time")  is  a 
very  common  fault  among  beginners,  and  should  be 
at  once  corrected  so  that  eventually  it  will  become 
more  or  less  automatic  to  rise  on  the  proper  foot. 

It  must  not,  however,  be  forgotten  that  unless  a 
horse  has  been  accustomed  to  be  ridden  on  this  par- 
ticular set  of  legs,  his  gait  on  the  opposing  ones  may 
be  very  uncomfortable,  ungainly,  and  tiring,  and  in 
many  cases  horses  will  deliberately  put  in  a  short 
stride  or  two  to  force  the  rider  back  to  rising  on  the 


*  The  truth  of  this  statement  cannot  be  ascertained,  as  might  be 
supposed,  by  examining  the  photographs  of  expert  women  riders. 
For  when  being  photographed  a  woman  will,  if  she  knows  anything 
about  the  game,  "sit"  to  the  trot  and  make  no  attempt  to  rise  until 
she  is  past  the  photographer,  in  order  that  none  of  the  pictures  will  be 
spoiled  by  having  caught  her  in  the  air. 

t  It  is  not,  as  popularly  supposed,  the  hind  leg,  which  is  ojf  the  ground, 
that  gives  the  most  impetus  to  the  rider.  On  the  contrary,  it  is  the 
propulsion  of  the  leg  which  strikes  the  ground  that,  just  prior  to  its 
being  lifted  again,  pushes  the  loin  muscles  of  the  animal  up  and 
assists  the  rider  in  rising. 


HINTS  ON   RIDING  101 

legs  to  which  the  animal  is  accustomed.  In  such  cases 
it  is  the  part  of  good  horsemanship  to  be  able  easily 
to  adapt  oneself  to  circumstances,  for  the  rider  will 
find  that,  in  spite  of  a  slight  tendency  to  be  thrown  to 
the  left,  it  will  be  possible  to  rise  on  the  wrong  leg  more 
gracefully  than  on  the  correct  leg  against  the  inclina- 
tion of  the  horse. 

The  height  of  the  rise — the  distance  that  the  rider  is 
thrown  up  in  the  air — naturally  depends  largely  upon 
the  individual  animal's  gait.  A  horse  with  a  long 
stride  will  cause  a  rider  to  rise  higher  than  one  with  a 
quick,  snappy  trot.  Horses  who  throw  their  rider  up 
so  little  that  there  is  a  scarcely  perceptible  rise  give  a 
prettier  effect,  but  are  less  comfortable  for  a  woman 
to  ride  than  those  who  throw  her  up  with  more  im- 
petus. 

The  subject  of  " hands"  is  of  equal  importance  with 
that  of  "seat,"  and  in  some  respects  is  even  more  im- 
portant. There  is  no  doubt  but  that  half  the  horses 
who  are  pullers  have  become  so  by  trying  to  get  away 
from  the  rough  hands  of  their  riders.  Pulling  riders 
are  the  ones  who  make  pulling  horses,  and  no  horse 
will  really  go  his  best  except  for  a  rider  with  good  hands, 
while  even  a  good  horse  will  frequently  fall  on  his  head 
when  ridden  by  a  person  with  bad  hands. 

Many  people,  however,  never  give  the  subject  seri- 
ous attention  because  they  go  on  the  principle  that 
"hands,"  like  a  "touch"  on  the  piano,  are  "born  not 
made,"  and  that  if  you  are  not  fortunate  enough  to  be 
born  with  good  hands  you'll  go  to  your  grave  without 
them.  This  is  true  to  a  large  extent,  but  "hands" 
can  be  improved,  and  no  one  who  has  been  properly 
taught  need  be  really  "mutton-fisted."  They  may 
not  acquire  the  delicacy  of  touch  possessed  by  their 


102  HACKS   AND   HUNTERS 

more  gifted  friends,  but  they  need  never  have  notice- 
ably bad  hands. 

To  begin  with,  I  think  that  the  first  step  toward 
good  hands  is  to  acquire  a  good  seat.  Hands  and  seat 
are  inextricably  interrelated.  Without  a  firm  and  se- 
cure feeling  in  the  saddle  no  man  or  woman  is  likely  to 
have  very  good  hands,  for  unless  they  don't  mind  falls 
at  all,  or  in  fact  relish  them,  they  will  unconsciously,  in 
endeavoring  to  stay  in  the  saddle,  be  bound  either  to 
"jab"  the  horse  in  the  mouth  or,  worse  yet,  exert  a  con- 
stant pressure  on  the  bit.  The  close  connection  be- 
tween a  firm  seat  and  good  hands  is  often  illustrated 
by  the  fact  that  women  are  accredited  with  better 
hands  than  men.  This  may  be  largely  due  to  their 
superior  lightness  of  touch  and  feminine  sensibilities, 
but  it  is,  as  already  stated,  as  often  due  to  the  fact 
that  a  woman  on  a  side-saddle  (and  it  is  in  this  saddle 
that  a  woman's  reputation  for  good  hands  has  been 
acquired)  has  such  a  firm  seat  that  she  is  absolutely 
independent  of  her  reins  in  order  to  maintain  her  seat. 
For  this  reason  it  is  perhaps  not  as  necessary  to  preach 
to  women  on  the  subject  of  hands  as  it  would  be  to 
men,  but  it  is  too  important  a  subject  to  be  omitted 
altogether. 

The  jockey,  Sam  Chifney,  tells  us  to  use  the  reins 
as  if  they  were  silken  threads,  and  J.  H.  Moore  always 
gave  the  advice  to  take  a  pull  at  the  reins  as  though 
you  were  drawing  a  cork  from  a  bottle  without  wish- 
ing to  spill  any  of  the  contents. 

It  must  be  remembered,  however,  that  good  hands 
do  not  in  any  sense  of  the  word  mean  weakness,  gentle 
indecision  or  vagueness,  nor  do  we  imply  by  good  hands 
the  sort  of  thing  that  some  people  pride  themselves  on 
when  they  ride  with  the  reins  loosely  flapping  in  the 


HINTS  ON  RIDING  103 

breeze.  By  good  hands  are  meant  a  constant  but 
gentle  and  delicate  communication  held  between  the 
horse  and  rider  by  means  of  the  mouth,  a  communica- 
tion extremely  light  but  absolutely  firm. 

One  rule  cannot  be  too  strongly  emphasized,  and 
that  is  that  evenness  of  pressure  must  be  maintained 
on  the  reins.*  Each  rein  must  be  the  length  of  the 
opposite  rein  in  the  other  hand.  That  is,  although 
the  bit  and  bridoonf  reins  may  be  of  different  lengths, 
the  right  bit  or  bridoon  rein  must  be  of  exactly  the  same 
length  as  the  left  bit  or  bridoon  rein.  Therefore  in 
picking  up  the  reins  the  beginner  must  take  care  that 
they  are  not  twisted,  but  be  careful  to  distinguish  be- 
tween them  so  that  they  may  be  of  the  same  length 
in  both  hands. 

Delicacy  of  touch  is  assisted  greatly  by  the  correct 
position  of  the  arms  and  the  hands,  as  well  as  by  the 
way  the  reins  are  held.  The  forearms  should  hang 
horizontally  and  easily  to  the  sides,  the  elbows  neither 
squeezed  tightly  in,  nor  yet  stuck  out  at  right  angles 
to  the  body.  The  correct  position  not  only  adds  neat- 
ness to  the  appearance  but  adds  to  the  power  of  the 
rider,  for,  although  in  pulling  up,  the  wrists  do  most  of 
the  work,  the  elbows  must  be  able  to  pull  back  in  a 
straight  line  to  the  rear,  and  the  arm  must  act  like  a 
piston,  forward  and  backward. 

The  forearm  should  be  at  right  angles  to  the  upper 
arm,  and  the  wrists  pliable  and  ready  to  give  and 
take.    In  this  position  the  arms  bear  no  weight  on 

*  Disregard  of  this  rule  even  by  good  riders  causes  most  horses  to 
acquire  an  uneven  way  of  holding  the  bit,  and  consequently  to  get  a 
"hard"  and  a  "soft"  side  to  their  mouths. 

t  The  bridoon  of  a  double  bridle  is  incorrectly  called  (in  this  country) 
a  "snaffle."  The  correct  terms  are  the  "bridoon"  and  the  "bit," 
and  not  the  "snaffle"  and  "curb." 


104  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

the  reins,  whereas  if  the  arms  are  extended  and  the 
forearm  is  more  or  less  in  a  line  with  the  reins,  all  the 
give  and  take  has  to  come  from  the  shoulder,  the 
whole  arm  instead  of  just  the  wrist  has  to  be  moved, 
and  unconsciously  the  rider  occasionally  rests  his  weight 
on  the  reins  and  the  horse's  mouth. 

In  order  to  maintain  the  correct  angle  of  the  fore- 
arm, the  hands,  when  hacking,  should  be  held  about 
half-way  between  the  right  knee  and  the  waist,  and 
about  at  a  level  with  the  waist-line.  (See  illustration 
facing  page  36.)  Horses  differ  very  much  in  the  way 
they  should  be  ridden,  and  some  require  more  leverage 
on  the  bit  than  others  in  order  to  make  them  step  high 
or  "act  up,"  in  which  case  the  hands  may  be  raised 
slightly  higher.  (See  illustration  facing  page  86.) 
Holding  the  hands  extremely  high,  however,  has  no 
advantage  and  lays  one  open  to  the  accusation  of 
"putting  on  airs"  or  "showing  off." 

For  hunting  or  jumping  the  reins  should  be  held 
shorter  than  for  hacking,  and  the  hands  should  be 
placed  forward  so  that  they  come  at  least  over  the 
rider's  knee,  and  should  be  held  as  low  as  possible. 

Most  of  the  detailed  directions  I  have  ever  read  in 
books  as  to  the  proper  way  of  holding  the  reins  are  so 
varied  and  obtuse  that  there  is  small  wonder  that 
beginners  are  all  at  sea  as  to  which  is  correct.  It 
seems  that,  as  Ruskin  says:  "It  is  far  more  difficult 
to  be  simple  than  it  is  to  be  complicated."  Most  in- 
structions on  the  subject  are  frightfully  complicated, 
whereas  in  reality  the  thing  is  extremely  simple. 

I  find  that  it  is  quite  unnecessary  to  know  the 
numerous  recommended  ways  of  holding  the  reins — 
instructions  which  make  the  average  book  on  riding 
look  like  a  labyrinth  of  meaningless  rules.     One  can 


HINTS  ON  RIDING  105 

content  oneself  with  a  very  simple  way  (used  very 
little  in  this  country,  but  almost  exclusively  in  Eng- 
land) which  serves  equally  well  for  all  purposes,  at  all 
times,  and  applies  equally  well  to  a  snaffle  or  to  a 
double  bridle. 

To  hold  the  reins  of  a  snaffle  you  do  as  follows: 
With  the  hand  held  so  that  the  knuckles  are  to  the 
front,  place  the  left  hand  over  the  near  (left)  rein, 
grasping  it  so  that  the  rein  lies  across  the  palm*  and 
passes  out  of  the  hand  between  the  forefinger  and 
thumb,  with  the  slack  of  the  rein  falling  over  the  back 
of  the  thumb.  Then  take  up  the  off  (right)  rein  in 
the  right  hand  in  the  same  manner,  but  lay  the  slack 
of  the  rein  across  the  palm  of  the  left  hand  on  top  of 
the  left  rein,  so  that  the  reins  are  thereby  crossed  over 
and  lie  on  top  of  each  other.  The  wrists  should  not 
be  rounded,  but  allowed  to  fall  without  stiffness  in  a 
natural  way,  bringing  the  knuckles  to  the  front  in 
more  or  less  of  a  horizontal  rather  than  a  vertical  posi- 
tion. 

The  above  style  of  crossing  the  reins  is  similar  to 
the  one  almost  entirely  used  by  jockeys  on  the  race- 
track, and  when  the  rider  shortens  the  reins  and  slides 
up  on  a  horse's  neck  in  a  race  or  over  a  jump,  it  is 
called  the  "  Nelson  wrap."  The  mistake  should  not  be 
made,  however,  of  letting  go  the  right  rein  with  the 
right  hand  and  endeavoring  to  ride  with  one  hand 
only;  both  hands  should  always  be  kept  on  the  reins 
except  on  occasions  in  which  the  right  hand  is  needed 
for  the  whip  or  to  adjust  something — in  which  case  it 
can  easily  be  lifted  off  without  rearranging  the  reins. 
Riding  with  but  one  hand  on  the  reins  is  very  bad  form 

*  It  is  also  permissible  to  hold  a  snaffle  rein  so  that  it  runs  between 
the  little  and  fourth  fingers,  passing  out  of  the  hand  as  stated  above. 


106  HACKS  AND   HUNTERS 

and  extremely  awkward-looking,  excepting  in  the  case 
of  the  military  man  who  has  to  have  his  sword-hand 
free,  or  the  poloist,  who  needs  his  right  hand  for  his 
stick.  Holding  the  reins  in  one  hand  necessitates  a 
much  shorter  hold  than  if  they  were  held  in  two;  it 
reduces  the  rider's  control  over  the  horse,  and,  in  order 
to  maintain  an  even  pressure  on  the  animal's  mouth, 
requires  that  the  hand  be  held  in  the  centre  line  of 
the  horse's  body,  a  position  as  ugly  as  it  is  uncom- 
fortable. 

Double  reins  should  be  held  in  exactly  the  same 
way  as  single  reins, '  except  that  the  little  fingers  on 
both  hands  separate  the  bit  and  bridoon  reins  on  each 
side.  To  proceed  in  picking  up  double  reins,  grasp 
the  left  bridoon  (snaffle)  rein  with  the  left  hand  in  the 
manner  already  mentioned,  allowing  it  to  pass  out  of 
the  hand  between  the  forefinger  and  thumb.  Then 
pass  the  left  bit  (curb)  rein  between  the  fourth  finger 
and  the  little  finger  of  the  left  hand,*  letting  this,  too, 
pass  out  of  the  hand  between  the  forefinger  and  the 
thumb;  the  slack  of  both  left  reins  to  fall  over  the 
back  of  the  thumb.  Now  take  up  the  right  bridoon 
and  bit  reins  in  the  same  manner  with  the  right  hand; 

*  The  method  of  having  the  bit  rein  between  the  little  finger  and 
the  fourth  finger,  which  thus  brings  it  on  the  inside  is  preferred  by 
most  good  horsemen,  and  is,  therefore,  described  here.  In  actual 
practice  the  question  as  to  which  rein  should  be  on  the  inside  must 
be  determined  by  the  amount  of  control  which  is  to  be  exercised  on 
that  rein,  for  we  can  work  the  inside  rein  more  effectively  than  we 
can  the  outside  rein,  inasmuch  as  we  can  bring  the  fourth  finger  to  bear 
down  against  it  without  even  moving  our  wrist.  For  general  use,  and 
in  particular  for  hacking,  the  bit  rein  should  be  the  predominant  rein, 
and  therefore  should  be  on  the  inside  as  described ;  but  in  some  cases, 
where  the  horse  goes  better  on  the  bridoon,  or  occasionally  in  hunting, 
it  may  be  reversed  and  the  bridoon  put  on  the  inside  and  the  bit  on  the 
outside,  and  at  such  a  length  that  there  is  little  or  no  pressure  exerted 
on  it,  unless  the  hands  are  rotated  inwardly  and  the  little  fingers  closed 
on  the  palms  of  the  hands. 


HINTS  ON  RIDING  107 

after  which,  still  keeping  the  right  hand  in  position, 
pass  the  slack  of  the  two  right  reins  across  the  palm 
of  the  left  hand  on  top  of  the  left  reins.  Both  hands 
should  always  be  kept  on  the  reins  except  on  odd  occa- 
sions, when  the  right  hand  can  be  lifted  off  the  reins 
or  resume  its  position  without  disturbing  them  in 
any  way. 

In  double-rein  riding  the  wrists  are  slightly  more 
rounded  than  in  using  a  snaffle,  and  the  knuckles  are 
thereby  held  in  a  more  vertical  manner;  this  position 
enables  the  fourth  finger,  which  has  chief  control  over 
the  inner  or  predominant  rein,  to  work  downward  and 
backward.  Reins  are  always  more  easily  held  by 
feeling  their  edges  than  their  flat  surfaces.  There- 
fore, in  exact  proportion  to  the  amount  of  leverage 
desired  to  be  exercised  by  the  fourth  finger  should  the 
rounding  of  the  wrists  be  increased.  In  extreme  cases 
when  showing  a  high  acting  hack,  the  wrists  are  often 
so  greatly  rounded  that  the  palms  are  almost  turned 
upward  and  the  knuckles  down,  a  method,  however, 
best  left  to  the  experienced. 

The  method  of  crossing  the  slack  of  the  reins  in  the 
palm  of  the  opposite  hand  has  several  advantages 
over  the  method  more  generally  used  in  this  country; 
in  which  the  reins,  separated  by  the  various  fingers, 
all  run  in  one  direction  and  come  out  between  the  first 
finger  and  thumb  of  the  left  hand. 

In  this  latter  form  of  riding,  the  rider  has  (1)  the  dis- 
advantage of  holding  the  reins  differently  in  each 
hand,  and  in  order  to  get  an  even  feel  on  both  reins 
he  has  to  have  the  off  rein  slightly  longer  than  the  near 
rein.  Should  he  now  take  his  right  hand  off  the  off 
rein,  this  rein  remains  more  or  less  longer  than  the 
other,  and  the  horse  is  unconsciously  pulled  around  to 


108  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

the  left.  In  the  crossed-method  plan  both  hands  have 
exactly  the  same  hold  on  the  reins,  and  they  can  be 
passed  from  one  to  another,  or  held  evenly  in  both 
hands  without  lengthening  or  shortening  one  or  the 
other.  (2)  This  method  also  prevents  the  reins  from 
slipping  through  the  fingers  as  they  do  when  held  in 
any  other  way.  This  is  because  in  the  crossed-rein 
method  the  friction  of  the  opposing  surfaces  of  leather 
is  utilized  to  prevent  slipping,  and  also  because  the 
muscles  which  hold  the  reins  in  this  way  are  stronger 
than  those  which  would  simply  press  them  together 
between  the  fingers.  (3)  The  modification  of  the 
"Nelson  wrap,"  formed  by  the  crossed  reins,  acts,  when 
laid  across  the  horse's  withers,  as  a  sort  of  support  in 
jumping,  should  the  horse  suddenly  refuse  or  hit  a 
fence  hard.  (4)  Held  in  this  fashion,  the  reins  are 
absolutely  even  as  to  the  pressure  they  exert,  and  in 
showing  a  hack  the  outside  rein,  or  bridoon  rein,  can 
be  loosened  altogether,  and  all  the  pressure  of  the 
fourth  fingers  in  both  hands  brought  to  bear  entirely 
on  the  inside  or  bit  rein,  exactly  as  if  only  a  single 
rein  were  being  used. 

The  rider  should  never  allow  her  mount  to  start 
until  the  command  is  given,  and  if  he  attempts  to  do 
so  he  should  be  gently  checked.  In  order  to  start  or 
to  increase  the  pace  when  already  moving,  the  reins 
should  be  gently  shortened,  not  flapped  or  jerked, 
and  the  animal  should  be  lightly  pressed  with  the 
heel.  Chirping  or  clucking  is  annoying  to  other 
horses  and  should  never  be  indulged  in. 

When  attempting  to  shorten  the  reins  we  should 
alter  the  feeling  of  them  as  little  as  possible,  and  should 
try  to  keep  them  at  equal  lengths  so  as  not  to  interfere 
with  the  horse's  mouth.    The  easiest  way  to  do  this, 


HINTS  ON   RIDING  109 

either  when  using  a  double  or  a  single  bridle,  is  as 
follows : 

See  that  the  right  hand  has  a  firm  hold  of  both  reins, 
then  slide  the  left  hand  up  the  left  rein;  when  the  de- 
sired length  has  been  obtained,  bring  the  right  hand 
up  to  that  position,  grasp  the  slack  of  the  right  reins 
with  the  forefinger,  third,  and  fourth  fingers  of  the  left 
hand,  and  then  slide  the  right  hand  up  to  the  equal 
length,  allowing  the  slack  of  the  right  reins  to  run 
through  the  forefinger,  third,  and  fourth  fingers  of  the 
left  hand,  until  the  reins  are  smooth  and  even  again. 

To  stop  or  slow  up  one's  mount,  either  shorten  the 
reins  gradually  and  gently,  or  exert  a  steady  pressure, 
but  never  jab  or  jerk  a  horse's  mouth  suddenly.  Ex- 
cept in  cases  of  emergency  a  horse  should  never  be 
pulled  up  sharply,  as  he  is  only  likely  to  strain  his 
tendons  or  ligaments,  spring  a  curb,  or  cross  his  legs 
and  fall  down.  I  well  remember  my  first  experience 
in  catching  a  runaway  in  Central  Park:  I  leaned  for- 
ward and,  grasping  the  bit  rein  of  the  running  animal, 
who  was  slipping  along  at  a  pretty  good  rate,  jerked 
it  suddenly  instead  of  pulling  on  it  gradually.  To  my 
horror  the  horse  and  rider  went  down  to  the  ground  as 
if  shot  by  a  gun.  Fortunately  neither  horse  nor  rider 
were  hurt,  but  it  taught  me  a  lesson  which  I  have 
never  forgotten. 

Turning  should  also  be  done  gently  and  slowly.  In 
order  to  turn  to  the  right,  for  instance,  we  should  slip 
the  right  hand  a  trifle  up  the  right  rein  to  shorten  it 
and,  by  turning  the  wrist  over  to  the  right  so  that  the 
thumb  is  on  the  outside  and  the  finger-nails  are  almost 
upward,  exert  a  gentle  pressure  on  this  rein  with  the 
little  finger  and  fourth  finger.  At  the  same  time  the 
left  hand  should  be  raised  a  trifle  and  carried  to  the 


110  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

right,  pressing  the  left  rein  against  the  animal's  neck 
a  little  way  up  from  the  withers,  for  naturally  the 
flexibility  of  the  neck  increases  away  from  the  withers. 
To  turn  to  the  left,  the  same  process  applies,  reversed. 
The  entire  motion  should,  in  all  cases,  come  from  the 
wrists,  and  under  no  circumstances,  except  on  a  green 
or  bad  horse,  should  the  rider  attempt  to  carry  her  arm 
out  and  away  from  the  horse's  shoulder,  and  no  matter 
how  disobedient  a  horse  may  be,  she  should  never 
assist  her  left  hand  by  crossing  over  her  right  hand,  or 
vice  versa.  It  is  never  a  question  of  brute  force,  and 
if  a  horse  refuses  to  turn  by  gentle  indications,  or 
when  the  full  force  of  the  right  hand  is  applied,  neither 
will  he  be  likely  to  yield  when  the  other  hand  is  also 
brought  to  bear  on  the  rein. 

On  an  absolutely  bridle-wise  saddler  or  polo  pony 
the  reins  laid  against  the  neck  are  all  the  indication 
that  a  horse  may  need  to  turn  properly,  but  the  aver- 
age horse  will  turn  in  better  style  if  his  hindquarters 
are  simultaneously  brought  around  by  a  gentle  pres- 
sure of  the  left  leg  drawn  back,  or  an  equally  gentle 
application  of  the  stick  on  the  right  side. 

In  order  to  back  a  horse,  supposing  that  he  is  well 
broken  and  already  knows  how  to  back,  the  rider 
should  lean  slightly  forward  (in  order  to  lighten  the 
horse's  hindquarters),  shorten  the  reins  gently,  and 
first  make  the  horse  take  a  step  forward,  as  this  facili- 
tates the  process  of  backing.  Then  keeping  her  hands 
low,  the  reins  should  be  gently  pulled  on  alternately 
(starting  with  whichever  side  the  animal  happens  to 
have  the  fore  leg  the  most  advanced).  For  example, 
if  the  off  fore  leg  is  farther  forward  than  the  near  fore, 
the  right  rein  should  be  felt  first,  and  vice  versa.  After 
a  slight  pull  on  the  rein  the  horse  will  draw  back  this 


HINTS  ON  RIDING  111 

leg,  after  which  it  should  be  slackened  a  little  and  the 
other  rein  pulled  on.  This  alternating  pressure  on  the 
reins  is  necessary  in  order  to  prevent  a  horse  from  at- 
tempting to  rear  should  he  be  dragged  backward  by 
an  equal  pull  on  both  reins.  The  voice  and  a  gentle 
pressure  of  leg  and  stick  help  in  backing,  and  enable 
the  hindquarters  of  the  horse  to  be  kept  straight. 

At  a  walk  a  horse  may  be  allowed  a  free  head,  pro- 
viding that  he  does  not  shuffle,  amble,  or  jiggle.  Noth- 
ing is  so  much  admired  as  a  good,  fast,  flat-footed 
walk.  At  all  other  gaits  the  horse  must  be  up  in  his 
bridle,  and  a  fine  rider  never  allows  his  mount  either 
to  increase  his  pace  without  an  order,  to  change  his 
gait  without  a  command,  or  to  exceed  the  limit  of 
speed  at  which  he  can  go  collectedly.  The  trot  should 
never  be  allowed  to  degenerate  into  a  rocking  move- 
ment, and  if  it  does  the  horse  should  be  steadied  at 
once.  Unity  of  speed  should  always  be  maintained 
by  a  more  or  less  fixed  length  of  rein,  and  "niggling" 
a  horse's  mouth  or  shifting  the  hands  about  should 
never  be  indulged  in.  The  steadier  the  hands,  the 
better. 

The  proper  use  of  the  reins  is  undoubtedly  one  of  the 
first  requisites  of  finished  horsemanship,  but  it  is  not 
until  a  rider  is  also  able  to  use  properly  the  aids  of 
leg,  whip,  or  spur,  and  the  correct  distribution  of  the 
body's  weight  that  he  or  she  can  rightly  be  called  a 
.finished  horseman  or  horsewoman.  In  racing  or  polo 
it  is  not  so  necessary  that  a  horse  be  collected  as  in 
hacking,  or  even  in  jumping,  but  the  success  of  a 
show  rider  of  saddle  horses  depends  on  his  ability  to 
flex  a  horse's  neck,  make  him  pick  up  his  feet  and  go 
collectedly. 

Owing  to  the  fact  that  the  muscle  which  draws  the 


112  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

fore  legs  of  a  horse  forward  is  attached  at  one  end  to 
the  shoulder  blade  and  at  the  other  to  the  top  of  the 
animal's  head  and  neck,  the  manner  in  which  he  carries 
the  latter  appreciatively  affects  his  stride.  The  higher 
his  head  (within  reason),  the  shorter  and  higher  will  be 
his  action.  At  the  same  time  there  will  be  less  weight 
on  his  forehand,  which  is  an  advantage  to  the  hack 
whose  fore  legs  receive  much  wear  and  tear  in  trotting. 

In  order  to  force  a  horse  to  carry  his  head  in  the 
position  we  desire,  we  must,  by  the  use  of  leg,  spur, 
or  stick,  if  necessary,  make  him  bring  his  hindquarters 
well  under  him,  and  send  him  into  his  bridle,  at  the 
same  time  slightly  restraining  him  by  means  of  the 
reins,  so  that  his  own  impetuosity  on  being  urged 
forward,  and  at  the  same  time  held  back,  will  make 
him  step  up  the  distance  he  otherwise  would  have 
stepped  in  length. 

Preparatory  to  trotting  we  must  by  means  of  leg 
and  stick  see  that  the  horse's  shoulders  are  square  to 
the  front  so  as  to  prevent  any  tendency  on  his  part  to 
break  into  a  canter.  In  cantering,  the  leg  and  stick 
also  play  a  large  part,  in  assisting  the  animal  to  lead 
on  his  proper  foot  and  to  prevent  his  cross  cantering 
(right  in  front  and  wrong  behind). 

Although,  for  the  sake  of  comfort,  a  woman's  horse 
is  usually  supposed  to  lead  on  his  off  fore  leg,  it  is 
really  quite  immaterial,  when  he  is  proceeding  on  a 
straight  line,  which  leg  the  animal  leads  with,  providing 
he  is  going  collectedly.  When  travelling  in  a  circle, 
however,  it  is  most  essential  that  the  horse  lead  on 
that  fore  leg  which  is  on  the  inner  side  of  the  circle,  or, 
in  other  words,  he  must  lead  on  the  fore  leg  on  the  side 
toward  which  he  is  turning.  If  this  is  not  carefully 
observed,  the  animal  is  likely  to  cross  his  fore  legs  and 


HINTS  ON  RIDING  113 

fall  down.  Thus  in  cantering  in  a  circle  to  the  right, 
the  animal  must  lead  on  the  off  fore  leg;  if  to  the  left, 
the  reverse. 

In  order,  for  example,  to  make  a  horse  canter  on  the 
off  lead  we  should  turn  his  head  slightly  to  the  left, 
lean  a  little  to  the  right  (effecting  this  movement  only 
from  the  waist  up),  and  gently  apply  the  left  leg  so 
as  to  force  his  hindquarters  out  and  thus  bring  the 
shoulder  on  the  off  side  advanced.  Practice  will  enable 
a  rider  so  to  time  the  signal  to  canter  that  it  will  arrive 
just  when  the  fore  leg  on  which  she  wishes  him  to 
lead  is  raised  from  the  ground,  and  therefore  most 
apt  to  lead  when  breaking  into  the  canter.  If  the 
hindquarters  are  forced  out  properly  prior  to  break- 
ing, the  horse  will  lead  behind  in  the  same  sequence 
as  in  front,  i.  e.,  his  off  hind  leg  following  his  off  fore 
leg,  and  he  will  not  be  inclined  to  cross  canter  as  he 
would  were  only  his  head  turned  prior  to  breaking  him. 

The  slight  change  in  the  rider's  weight,  when  she 
leans  to  the  right  or  left,  will  often,  on  a  well-broken 
horse,  be  a  sufficient  signal  to  the  horse  as  to  which 
leg  he  should  lead  on.  But  the  rider  must  not  overdo 
this,  or  look  down  constantly  in  order  to  ascertain 
which  leg  the  horse  is  leading  on,  for  this  can  very 
easily  be  felt,  or  be  ascertained  by  watching  the 
muscle  play  of  the  shoulder. 

The  use  of  leg,  stick,  and  spur  can,  of  course,  only 
be  learned  after  long  experience,  and  in  any  case  they 
should  never  be  used  without  a  preliminary  "feel"  of 
the  reins,  and  should  only  be  applied  gently  and  even- 
ly, and  never  violently  or  suddenly,  as  is  so  often  done 
with  an  accompanying  jerk  of  the  shoulders.  Aside 
from  its  use  in  making  a  horse  change  leads,  by  means 
of  an  evenly  applied  and  very  gentle  backward  pres- 


114  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

sure  of  the  calf,  a  man  can  literally  squeeze  a  horse 
up  into  his  bridle.  With  a  woman  the  action  of  the 
left  leg  must  often  be  supplanted  by  an  equally  gentle 
pressure  of  the  stick  on  the  right  side,  for  (unless  the 
horse  is  well  accustomed  to  being  ridden  under  a  side- 
saddle, and  understands  various  signals,  such  as  the 
altering  of  the  weight  in  the  saddle  in  addition  to  the 
use  of  the  leg),  he  might  misinterpret  it  and  take  it 
for  a  signal  to  change  his  gait  or  to  change  leads. 

The  efficiency  with  which  the  heel  acts  is  greatly 
increased  if  a  blunt  polo  spur  is  worn.  This,  how- 
ever, only  applies  to  an  experienced  rider  who  has  her- 
self in  such  perfect  control  that  she  will  never,  even 
inadvertently,  touch  her  mount  when  jumping,  or 
should  he  play  up  or  kick.  There  is  a  very  apt 
French  saying:  " UEperon  estun  rasoir  dans  les  mains 
d'un  singe"  ("A  spur  is  a  razor  in  the  hands  of  a 
monkey")-  This  applies  with  peculiar  fitness  to  a 
spur  on  the  heel  of  children,  beginners,  or  even  the 
average  indifferent  rider. 

On  the  other  hand,  for  a  good  rider  a  spur  is  extremely 
effective  in  making  a  horse  go  collectedly.*  One  oc- 
casionally hears  it  said  that  spurs  of  any  kind  are 
cruel,  but  this  undoubtedly  arises  from  the  fact  that 
some  people  seem  to  confuse  a  blunt  spur  with  a 
sharp  one.  I  quite  agree  that  the  use  of  a  sharp  or 
rowelled  spur  is,  at  all  times,  unnecessary,  and  that 
it  can  very  easily  become  an  instrument  of  torture. 
Particularly  is  this  true  when  it  is  used  by  a  woman 
in  a  side-saddle,  who,  owing  to  her  position,  can  only 
apply  a  spur  more  or  less  parallel  to  the  horse's  sides, 

*  It  is  all  nonsense  to  say  that  it  is  dangerous  to  wear  a  spur  for  fear 
of  its  catching  in  the  stirrup-iron  in  case  of  an  accident.  In  any  case 
with  a  proper  safety  bar  the  iron  would  come  out. 


HINTS  ON  RIDING  115 

thereby  tearing  instead  of  merely  pricking  his  skin. 
Owing  to  the  fact  that  her  habit  conceals  the  bleeding 
sides  of  the  animal,  the  damage  cannot  be  seen  by  the 
onlookers,  or  by  the  rider  herself. 

On  the  other  hand,  the  touch  of  a  blunt  spur  is 
quite  painless  and  amply  fulfils  all  requirements.  Al- 
though on  a  jumper  it  should  be  used  with  great  dis- 
cretion, and  on  a  particularly  sensitive  animal  not  at 
all;  on  a  sluggish  animal  it  is  of  assistance  in  urging 
him  into  his  jumps,  and  on  a  hack  it  is  invaluable  in 
making  him  go  into  his  bridle  or  change  leads,  etc. 
The  touch  of  an  unspurred  heel  would  be  both  ineffec- 
tive and  tiring  to  the  rider.  It  comes  in  extremely 
handy  in  the  show  ring,  where  the  use  of  a  whip  is  never 
a  pretty  sight,  while  in  the  hunting  field,  among  a  crowd 
of  horses,  a  spur  can  be  applied  noiselessly  without 
startling  other  horses.  Some  horses,  indeed,  seem  to 
know  full  well  when  their  rider  is  spurred,  and  will 
misbehave  whenever  she  has  left  off  her  boot  orna- 
ment. 

The  proper  spot  in  which  to  spur  a  horse  is  that 
most  sensitive  portion  of  his  anatomy,  immediately 
behind  the  girths,  and  nowhere  else.  For  a  woman 
to  apply  a  spur  here,  however,  would  necessitate  her 
turning  her  foot  at  almost  right  angles  to  the  animal's 
sides,  thus  bringing  her  knee  away  from  the  saddle 
and  rendering  her  seat  very  insecure.  She  should, 
therefore,  reserve  this  more  correct  method  for  show- 
ing, haute  ecole,  or  possibly  for  pushing  a  horse  up  to 
a  gate,  etc.,  but  content  herself,  in  general  riding,  in 
jumping  or  hunting,  with  applying  the  spur  a  little 
farther  up  on  the  horse's  side.  Although  less  effective, 
it  will  make  no  material  difference  if  it  slides  along 
the  animal's  skin  on  a  line  more  or  less  parallel  with 


116  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

his  side,  unless  she  is  armed  with  the  aforementioned 
rowelled  or  sharp  spur.  A  woman's  spur,  in  any  case, 
owing  to  the  fact  that  it  is  often  intercepted  by  her 
skirt,  is  less  effective  than  a  man's,  but,  for  all  that,  is 
quite  useful  enough. 

The  whip,  or  stick,  either  alone  or  in  conjunction 
with  the  heel  and  spur,  should  be  used  as  an  indicator 
and  but  rarely  as  a  means  of  punishment.  Few  horses 
should  ever  be  severely  whipped,  except  really  mean 
ones,  previously  badly  trained,  and  on  whom  all  other 
tactics  have  already  been  tried  without  success.  St. 
Francis  de  Sale's  words,  that  "  Nothing  is  so  strong  as 
gentleness;  nothing  so  gentle  as  strength,"  is  even 
more  applicable  in  our  dealings  with  animals  than 
with  humans. 

For  ordinary  use  a  stick  of  sufficient  length  to  en- 
able one  to  touch  the  horse's  flank  with  a  gentle  tap 
is  all  that  is  needed.  The  cutting-whip,  owing  to  its 
severity,  is  reserved  for  schooling  and  racing.  After 
much  practice  one  can  learn  to  twirl  it,  catch  it  on 
one's  little  finger,  pick  it  up  and  bring  it  down  on  a 
horse  the  way  a  jockey  might,  but  only  one  person 
in  a  hundred  ever  accomplishes  this  feat,  for  it  is  very 
difficult  and  needs  almost  as  much  practice  as  learn- 
ing to  catch  a  four-in-hand  thong.  Unless,  therefore, 
one  is  sure  of  not  dropping  it,  it  is  better  not  attempted. 

All  sticks  and  whips,  of  whatever  variety,  should  be 
held  about  half-way  up  the  stick  and  with  the  point 
always  pointing  upward.  In  talking  or  gesticulating 
one  should  never  raise  the  right  hand  with  the  whip 
in  it,  as  it  is  apt  to  frighten  the  horse.  In  order  also 
not  to  annoy  a  neighbor's  mount,  it  is  better,  when 
riding  in  company,  and,  for  that  matter,  smarter-look- 
ing at  all  times,  to  carry  one's  whip  or  stick  close  to 


HINTS   ON  RIDING  117 

one's  side  and  pointed  rather  backward  and  downward 
instead  of  out  and  at  right  angles. 

The  correct  style,  length,  and  shape  of  sticks  and 
crops  come  more  strictly  under  the  head  of  "appoint- 
ments" and  will  therefore  be  discussed  in  the  "  Chap- 
ter on  Dress." 

The  voice  plays  an  important  part  in  conveying  our 
meanings,  and  to  the  excited  horse  an  occasional  steady- 
ing word  or  sharp  reprimand  will  often  have  more 
effect  than  more  stringent  methods,  but,  although  we 
may  use  all  the  endearing  terms  that  we  like  to  our 
pets  in  their  stable,  we  should  never  lessen  the  power 
of  our  voice  over  animals  by  idly  and  constantly  chat- 
ting to  them  when  out  riding.  Nor  should  we  ever 
chirp  or  cluck  to  them,  which  is  a  most  disconcerting 
habit  to  our  neighbors  when  riding  in  company. 

It  is  only  after  long  years  of  experience,  or  practice, 
in  the  use  of  our  hands,  heels,  spur,  and  whip  that  we 
at  last  become  really  "finished." 

Some  people  are  possessed  of  a  figure  that  lends  them 
an  air  of  grace  and  suppleness  unattainable  by  those 
less  fortunate;  others  again  are  gifted  with  that  won- 
derful power  which  enables  them  to  have  a  subtle 
control  over  all  animals,  but  in  any  case,  whether  or 
not  we  are  so  endowed,  it  is  a  fact  that  we  are  far 
from  being  a  good  horseman  or  horsewoman  unless  we 
are  always  striving  to  be  a  better  one. 

"Knowledge  is  proud  that  she  has  learnt  so  much; 
Wisdom  is  humble  that  she  knows  no  more." 

Dickens's  words,  "The  first  test  of  a  truly  great  man 
is  his  humility,"  might  aptly  be  paraphrased  to  read: 
"The  first  test  of  a  truly  great  sportsman  is  his 
humility." 


118  HACKS   AND   HUNTERS 

To  this  purpose  an  almost  impossibly  high  standard 
should  ever  be  held  before  us.  I,  personally,  can  never 
be  grateful  enough  for  the  constant  and  unremitting 
criticism  of  the  very  dear  friend  to  whom  I  owe  all 
that  I  know  about  horses.  He  constantly  spurred 
me  on  to  greater  efforts  by  telling  me  my  faults  when 
others  had  but  words  of  praise;  he  never  for  a  moment 
allowed  me  -to  think  that  I  had  done  well  enough, 
scorned  to  accept  any  excuses  for  my  failures,  and 
never  permitted  me  to  blame  the  horse,  or  weather, 
or  conditions,  but  insisted  that  I  take  all  the  blame, 
telling  me  to  "shut  up  my  excuse  book  and  throw  it 
away." 


CHAPTER   VIII 
JUMPING 

'No  game  was  ever  yet  worth  a  rap 
For  a  rational  man  to  play, 

Into  which  no  accident,  no  mishap 
Could  possibly  find  a  way." 

— Gordon. 


tc 


Plus  tu  sauras,  moins  tu  diras,  mieux  tu  ensei- 
gneras."  ("The  more  you  know,  the  less  you  will  say, 
the  better  you  will  teach"),  is  a  saying  that  applies 
with  peculiar  force  to  any  instruction  on  jumping. 
For  when  all  is  said  and  done  there  is  little  that  can 
be  suggested  that  will  be  of  much  assistance  to  the  rider. 

To  approach  the  jump  at  a  suitable  pace,  to  steady 
one's  mount  well  into  the  jumps,  lean  forward  and 
give  him  his  head  as  he  takes  off,  are  almost  the  only 
words  of  advice  that  are  worth  much,  and  even  these 
are  far  easier  said  than  done.  Perhaps  the  most  im- 
portant thing  of  all  is  to  remember  that  a  horse  must 
have  absolute  freedom  of  the  head  and  neck  if  he  is 
to  jump  well.  The  manner  in  which  a  horse  in  his 
natural  state,  or  on  the  "long  reins,"  extends  his  neck 
as  he  takes  off,  flexes  it  when  he  jumps,  and  again 
extends  it  on  landing,  is  perhaps  best  demonstrated 
by  the  moving-pictures  of  horse-jumping,  taken  by 
the  ultra-rapid  camera,  in  which  every  move  of  the 
animal  is  so  reduced  in  speed  that  one  can  easily  study 
it.  Seeing  such  pictures  or  watching  a  horse  jump  in 
a  corral  is  a  liberal  education  in  itself. 

Interfering  with  the  motion  of  a  horse's  head  and 
neck,  even  in  the  slightest  degree,  would  have  the  same 

119 


120  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

effect  that  it  would  on  a  man  preparing  to  jump,  were 
his  arms  tied  behind  him,  or  pulled  by  a  string  attached 
to  the  wrists.  There  is  an  apt  French  saying  that  the 
heaviest  thing  on  the  back  of  a  horse  are  the  hands  of 
the  rider.  And  it  is  a  fact  that  a  horse  can  jump  far 
greater  heights  in  a  corral,  even  when  a  dead  weight, 
approximating  that  of  a  rider,  has  been  tied  on  his 
back,  than  he  can  with  the  average  rider.* 

It  sometimes  seems  as  if  a  good  rider  were  actually 
"lifting"  a  horse  over  his  jumps,  but  this  only  appears 
so  because  the  rider's  hands  and  the  rise  of  the  horse 
are  perfectly  timed.  In  reality,  any  theory  of  "lift- 
ing" is  as  ridiculous  as  it  would  be  to  attempt  to  in- 
crease the  speed  of  a  boat  one  was  sitting  in  by  push- 
ing one's  feet  against  the  bow.  Many  English  and 
Irish  horses  are  accustomed  to  being  held  tightly  by 
the  head  all  the  way  over  their  jumps,  but  this  method 
is,  to  my  way  of  thinking,  based  entirely  on  a  wrong 
principle.  The  properly  trained  horse  will  jump  best 
when  steadied  into  his  jumps,  and  then  given  his  head 
as  he  takes  off.  In  doing  this,  however,  I  do  not 
mean  that  the  reins  should  be  flapping  in  the  breeze, 
or  allowed  to  slip  through  the  rider's  fingers  to  such 
an  extent  that  they  require  "winding  up"  again  after 
each  jump.  On  the  contrary,  the  horse  should  be 
given  his  head  by  the  rider  leaning  well  forward  as  the 
animal  takes  off.  (See  illustration  facing  page  70.)  In 
this  way,  although  the  horse  has  the  freedom  of  his  head, 

*  Undoubtedly  tremendous  heights  have  been  jumped  by  horses 
with  a  rider  up,  and  one  might  possibly  doubt  whether  Confidence,  for 
instance,  would  ever  jump  8  feet  y2  inch  unless  ridden  over  it.  The 
reason  for  this,  however,  is  not  that  a  horse  cannot  jump  greater  heights 
by  himself,  but  that  he  will  not  attempt  such  a  monstrous  fence  unless 
forced  to  face  it  by  a  rider.  The  fact  that  unhampered  by  a  rider  he 
can  actually  achieve  greater  height  remains,  I  think,  more  or  less 
undisputed. 


Bronze  of  the  authoress  on  Cygnet. 
By  Harry  A.  La  Montagne. 


JUMPING  121 

the  reins,  which,  preparatory  to  jumping,  should  have 
been  shortened  (so  that  a  woman's  hands  come  over 
her  knee),  are  kept  at  about  the  same  length  the  en- 
tire way  over  the  jump.  In  all  cases  the  hands  should 
be  as  low  and  as  motionless  as  possible,  and  no  at- 
tempt should  be  made  to  interfere  with  the  horse's 
mouth.  Both  hands  should  remain  on  the  reins,  and 
the  style  seen  in  old  sporting  prints,  where  the  rider 
has  one  arm  raised  in  the  air — termed  " calling  a  cab" 
— should  not  be  imitated.  The  old-fashioned  idea  that 
one  should  lean  back  over  a  jump  has  long  since  dis- 
appeared in  this  country,  but  in  England  one  still  sees 
many  of  the  best  riders  doing  it.  Experience,  how- 
ever, has  taught  riders  who  make  a  specialty  of  jump- 
ing, that  the  position  in  which  one  leans  well  forward 
is,  by  all  odds,  the  best.  Although-  the  horse  un- 
doubtedly requires  to  lighten  his  forehand  before  tak- 
ing off,  nevertheless,  he  does  the  actual  jumping  by  the 
propelling  powers  of  his  hindquarters,  and  the  for- 
ward seat  is  the  only  one  which  enables  the  rider  not 
only  to  maintain  the  proper  centre  of  gravity  as  the 
horse  rises  in  the  air,  but  also  to  get  his  or  her  weight 
off  the  animal's  loins,  which,  above  all,  should  be  ab- 
solutely free.  When  the  animal  is  about  to  land,  the 
body  should  be  straightened  a  little  so  as  still  to 
maintain  the  centre  of  gravity  as  well  as  to  lessen  the 
concussion  on  the  animal's  fore  legs,  but  under  no  cir- 
cumstances is  it  necessary,  ao  is  so  often  supposed,  for 
the  rider  to  lean  really  far  back.* 

Leaning  way  back  brings  the  weight  directly  on  the 
horse's  loins,  which  interferes  with  his  lifting  powers 

*  There  are  times,  of  course,  when  a  horse  takes  off  before  he  is 
expected  to,  when  even  the  best  of  riders  inadvertently  lean  back,  or 
as  was  once  aptly  expressed,  are  "left  behind." 


122  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

and  makes  him  tick,  or  drag  down  a  rail.  At  the  same 
time,  as  already  stated,  in  the  position  of  leaning  back, 
were  the  rider  to  try  to  give  the  horse  sufficient  rein, 
he  would  be  obliged  to  let  it  slip  through  his  fingers, 
lessening  control  over  the  animal  and  obliging  the 
rider,  after  each  jump,  to  wind  it  up  again.  In  the 
leaning  forward  position  the  rider  can,  on  the  con- 
trary, give  the  animal  all  the  head  he  wants,  without, 
except  in  unusual  cases,  unduly  lengthening  the  reins 
or  letting  them  slip  through  the  fingers. 

It  is  sometimes  thought  that  were  the  animal  to 
peck  badly,  the  rider  who  was  leaning  slightly  forward 
would  go  over  the  animal's  head.  Such,  however, 
would  in  any  case  not  apply  to  a  woman  in  a  side- 
saddle, and  experience  shows  that  it  should  not  neces- 
sarily apply  to  a  man  or  a  woman  astride,  unless  they 
have  overdone  a  good  thing  and  are  leaning  too  far 
forward. 

Unfortunately,  some  of  our  amateur  riders  seem  to 
think  that  if  a  thing  is  good,  more  of  it  is  better,  and 
they  almost  climb  up  onto  a  horse's  neck,  retaining 
their  fantastic  position  even  when  he  lands,  so  that 
were  he  to  peck  they  would  surely  go  over  his  head, 
or  worse  yet,  so  overbalance  the  poor  animal  that  they 
would  bring  him  down. 

It  stands  to  reason,  of  course,  that  in  order  to  main- 
tain one's  balance  in  the  saddle  sufficiently  well  to  be 
absolutely  independent  of  the  reins,  and  not  likely  to 
touch  the  horse's  mouth  under  any  circumstances,  re- 
quires above  all  a  firm  seat.  The  best  manner  in  which 
a  woman  may  acquire  this  has  already  been  discussed 
in  Chapter  VII,  so  suffice  it  here  to  repeat  that  she 
must  balance  from  the  waist  up,  and  in  case  of  need 
clamp  herself  into  the  saddle  by  the  pressure  of  her 


JUMPING  123 

left  knee  against  the  leaping  head.  By  keeping  her 
leather  at  the  proper  length,  her  knee  will  always  be 
sufficiently  bent,  or  " pointed,"  to  absorb  much  of  the 
jar  of  the  jump. 

Of  equal  importance  to  the  actual  business  of  jump- 
ing is  the  matter  of  properly  placing  the  animal  at 
his  fences.  One  invariable  rule,  which  cannot  be  too 
strongly  emphasized,  is  that  a  horse  should  always 
be  straight  at  his  jumps.  If  he  is  taken  into  the 
wings,  or  up  to  the  fence  sidewise,  he  is  bound  to 
bungle  it,  and,  should  he  hit  the  jump,  will  have  a 
nasty  fall  on  top  of  his  rider.  Beginners  are  very  apt 
to  forget  this,  and  I  have  even  seen  men  who  have 
hunted  for  years,  and  who  ought  to  know  better,  start 
a  horse  diagonally  at  his  jumps  and  wonder  why  the 
horse,  having  more  intelligence  than  his  rider,  refused, 
or,  being  on  a  par  of  stupidity  with  his  rider,  attempted 
the  thing  and  bungled  it.  I  remember  when  I  first 
started  to  hunt  I  took  one  of  my  numerable  falls  in 
just  this  fashion.  It  was  my  first  day  out  with  the 
Meadow  Brook  hounds,  and  we  approached  a  typical 
big  Long  Island  "in  and  out."  As  hounds  were  not 
running,  one  of  the  recognized  " bruisers"  of  the  field 
stopped  to  pull  down  a  top  rail.  I  was  riding  an  old 
hunter  who  was  extremely  clever  and  a  remarkable 
jumper,  but  whom  I  credited  with  being  absolutely 
invincible,  as  up  to  that  time  I  had  only  hunted  her 
over  a  country  in  which  the  jumps  had  all  been  child's 
play  to  her.  Consequently,  I  mentally  "pooh  poohed" 
the  idea  of  any  fence  stopping  her,  and  on  this  par- 
ticular incident,  selecting  a  panel,  I  gaily  sailed  down 
at  the  "in  and  out."  We  did  the  "in"  neatly  enough, 
but  once  in,  I  realized,  too  late,  that  to  get  out  on  the 
other  side  was  no  easy  matter,  as  the  lane  was  exceed- 


124  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

ingly  narrow.  I  therefore  concluded  that  my  mare 
would  get  more  of  a  run  if  I  took  the  fence  diagonally, 
which  I  did,  with  the  result  that  I  found  myself,  much 
to  my  astonishment,  on  the  ground  in  a  heap  with 
my  mare.  By  this  accident,  however,  I  not  only 
pleased  the  field  hugely  by  having  made  a  gap  for  them 
to  pour  through — a  fall  in  time,  you  know,  saves  nine 
— but  I  also  learned  two  things:  First,  that  when  cer- 
tain gentlemen  of  the  Meadow  Brook  Hunt,  without 
mentioning  any  names,  stop  to  pull  down  a  fence,  you 
may  rest  well  assured  that  that  particular  fence  is 
beyond  the  powers  of  mortal  men  and  horses;  and 
second,  that  it  is  better  to  take  five  feet  straight  than 
four  feet  crooked.  "One  thorn  of  experience  is  worth 
a  whole  wilderness  of  warning." 

The  pace  at  which  a  hjorse  approaches  his  jumps  is 
also  of  paramount  importance.  As  a  rule,  beginners 
and  green  horses  are  apt  to  rush  their  fences,  either 
through  ignorance  or  through  a  certain  form  of  "funk" 
which  inspires  them  to  have  the  worst  over  as  soon  as 
possible.  It  is  peculiar  how  many  people,  who  jump 
quite  bravely  when  they  are  allowed  to  sail  down  over 
a  fence,  will  find  their  nerves  failing  if  they  are  obliged 
to  jump  quietly  and  slowly  out  of  a  narrow  lane.  It  is 
for  this  reason,  I  believe,  that  it  requires  quite  a  dif- 
ferent type  of  nerve  to  ride  well  over  an  Irish  country, 
and  face  the  monstrous  banks  and  drains  almost  from 
a  standstill,  than  it  does  to  gallop  over  the  hedges  of 
Leicestershire,  or  the  timber  of  a  Meadow  Brook  drag. 

However,  inasmuch  as  racing  over  timber  is  as  fool- 
ish as  it  is  dangerous,  it  is  better  to  teach  beginners 
and  young  horses  to  jump  small  fences  from  a  trot,  or 
a  collected  canter,  but  this  theory,  as  we  have  already 
stated  in  discussing  the  qualifications  of  the  hunter, 


JUMPING  125 

can  easily  be  overdone.  It  stands  to  reason  that  in 
jumping  anything  over  three  feet,  which  height  ean 
be  easily  negotiated  by  most  horses  from  an  absolute 
standstill,  a  certain  amount  of  pace  is  required  in  order 
to  give  the  horse  sufficient  momentum  to  get  up  in  the 
air.  The  more  slowly  the  horse  jumps  the  less  mo- 
mentum he  has,  the  more  vertically  he  is  obliged  to 
raise  himself  over  the  jump,  and  the  more  fatiguing 
the  jump  will  be  for  him.*  In  order  to  jump  grace- 
fully, and  without  unnecessarily  tiring  himself,  a  cer- 
tain amount  of  pace  should  be  maintained,  and  all  that 
is  necessary,  in  order  to  enable  him  to  jump  safely,  is 
that  whatever  the  pace  of  approach  he  should  be  able 
to  set  himself  and  get  his  hocks  under  him  before  tak- 
ing off. 

It  is  absolutely  impossible  to  give  any  hard-and-fast 
rule  as  to  how  a  horse  should  be  put  at  his  jumps, 
or  at  what  exact  pace;  for  horses  differ  as  much  as 
human  beings,  and  what  would  be  correct  for  one 
would  be  quite  wrong  for  the  other.  Refusers  have 
to  be  urged  and  hot  horses  steadied,  while,  again,  some 
horses  have  been  badly  broken  and  jump  well  only 
when  they  are  allowed  to  rush.  Others  require  to  go 
so  slowly  that  they  appear  almost  to  stop  before  they 
"pop  over,"  and,  in  all  cases,  the  rider  who  wishes  to  be 
considered  a  finished  horseman  or  horsewoman,  must 
adapt  himself  or  herself  to  the  horse  in  hand. 

They  must  be  able  not  only  to  ride  each  horse  dif- 
ferently, but  often  ride  the  same  horse  differently  at 
different  fences.  On  the  whole,  however,  a  well- 
broken  horse  who  has  been  taught  to  jump  correctly 

*  Furthermore,  in  jumping  slowly  a  horse  requires  more  freedom  of 
the  head  and  neck,  and  therefore  it  needs  more  delicacy  on  the  part 
of  the  rider  not  to  interfere  with  the  animal's  mouth. 


126  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

will  do  his  best  if  sent  at  the  average  fence  at  a  fair 
hunting  pace.  He  should  be  started  slowly,  and  the 
pace  should  increase  rather  than  decrease  up  to  the 
moment  of  the  take  off. 

It  is  in  the  manner  that  the  last  dozen  or  so  strides 
are  taken  that  the  neatness  of  the  jump  depends,  and 
in  the  show  ring  or  schooling  yard,  if  a  horse  has  been 
taken  up  to,  and  into,  the  wings  correctly,  nine  cases 
out  of  ten  he  will  make  a  good  jump.  It  is  just  be- 
cause this  putting  of  a  horse  at  his  jumps  correctly  is 
so  difficult,  and  is  of  more  importance  than  the  actual 
seat  of  the  rider  over  the  jump,  that  a  big  jump  is  more 
difficult  to  negotiate  than  a  small  one.  The  leeway 
allowed  the  rider  in  the  manner  of  putting  his  horse 
at  a  fence  is  naturally  much  greater  at  a  small  fence 
than  at  a  big  one,  for  the  smaller  the  fence  the  less 
difference  it  makes  where  the  animal  takes  off.  The 
larger  jump  can  only  be  negotiated  if  a  horse  comes 
into  it  "just  so." 

Whip  or  spur  are  of  little  assistance  over  a  jump. 
Only  one  person  in  a  hundred  can  apply  the  whip  with 
proper  rhythm  and  at  the  right  moment,  and  as  a 
general  rule  more  harm  is  done  with  the  whip  than 
good. 

What  is  of  far  more  importance  than  whip  or  spur, 
and  which  justifies  the  old  saying:  "A  spur  in  the  head 
is  worth  ten  in  the  heel,"  is  that  there  should  be  a  de- 
sire on  the  part  of  the  rider,  as  well  as  on  the  part  of 
the  horse,  to  get  over  the  fence. 

The  mind  of  the  rider  plays  a  tremendous  part  in 
making  a  horse  jump,  and  it  is  usually  quite  true  that 
if  "you  throw  your  heart  over  the  fence,  your  horse 
will  follow  it."  A  lack  of  courage  on  the  part  of  the 
rider   seems  instantly  to  communicate  itself  to  the 


JUMPING  127 

horse,  who  immediately  starts  refusing  or  bungling  his 
jumps.  With  nerve  and  implicit  confidence  in  himself 
and  his  mount,  many  an  ignoramus  on  a  green  horse 
can  accomplish  more  than  the  skilful  rider  who  is  all 
in  a  funk. 

There  is  an  old  saying  that  one  will  never  become  a 
good  rider  until  one  has  had  seventy-seven  falls. 
This  is,  perhaps,  working  on  the  principle  of  Con- 
fucius's  words:  "That  our  greatest  glory  is  not  in 
never  falling,  but  in  rising  every  time  we  fall !"  Pro- 
viding that  they  do  not  destroy  the  confidence  of  the 
rider,  I  am  quite  agreed  that  nothing  is  better  for 
one  than  a  few  falls,  which  have  not  been  forced, 
but  which  have  come  all  in  the  natural  course  of 
events. 

There  is,  however,  a  good  deal  of  bosh  written  about 
"learning  how  to  fall"!  Although  I  have  had  my 
full  share  of  tumbles,  it  has  always  appeared  to  me 
that  falls,  as  a  rule,  occur  far  too  suddenly  and  swiftly 
to  permit  practising  any  of  the  stunts  regarding  tuck- 
ing one's  chin  into  the  breast  to  prevent  the  neck 
breaking,  etc.  The  best  that  one  can  do  is  to  be  as 
limp  as  possible  and  trust  to  luck  that  one  will  not 
break  or  bend  any  bones.* 

Apropos  of  this  the  celebrated  cross-country  rider, 
the  late  Mr.  Trumbull  Cary,  of  Batavia,  N.  Y.,  in- 
vited a  party  of  hunting  men  from  Geneseo  to  his 
house  for  dinner.  Afterward  he  took  them  to  a  room 
in  which  were  numerous  small  chairs  placed  on  mat- 
tresses. Mr.  Cary  then  commenced  flinging  himself 
over  these  chairs  to  demonstrate  that,  by  certain  move- 

*  Holding  on  to  the  reins,  as  is  so  often  recommended,  may  indeed 
save  one  several  minutes  in  remounting,  but  personally  I  prefer  to 
kick  myself  free  of  the  debris  as  quickly  as  possible  and  let  the  horse 
look  after  himself. 


128  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

merits  of  his  body,  he  could  fall  without  hurting  him- 
self, and  he  seemed  very  indignant  when  one  of  his 
guests  remarked:  "That's  all  very  well  in  theory; 
but  the  first  time  you  try  that  in  the  hunting  field 
you'll  break  your  blooming  neck."  The  very  next 
day,  Mr.  Cary  was  out  with  the  Geneseo  Fox  Hounds 
and  had  a  fall  in  which  he  broke  his  collar-bone,  much 
to  his  disgust  and  the  amusement  of  his  dinner  guests. 

The  first  fall  often  proves  to  the  novice  that  falling 
isn't  so  very  bad,  after  all,  and  increases  the  courage, 
but  a  bad  fall  is  very  often  apt  to  break  the  nerve, 
particularly  if  one  does  not  remount  at  once,  or  makes 
too  much  of  the  mishap.  Nothing  sadder  can  befall 
horse  or  rider  than  the  loss  of  confidence,  for  "he  who 
has  lost  confidence  can  lose  nothing  more." 

Nerve  is,  however,  a  thing  quite  utterly  beyond  the 
control  of  any  one,  and  has  far  more  to  do  with  the 
physique  and  the  prosaic  matter  of  a  good  digestion 
than  with  any  trait  of  character.  The  best  way  to 
preserve  the  nerve  is  to  keep  in  good  health,  to  eat 
and  drink  moderately,  and  to  avoid  late  hours  and 
smoking.  The  English  rough  rider,  "Cap"  Tomline, 
was  right  when  he  said  to  a  party  of  men:  "The  reason 
you  gentlemen  have  such  bad  nerves  is  because  you 
smoke  so  much.  It  turns  your  brains  into  a  kind  of 
vapour." 

There  are  many  people  who  seem  to  possess  unlim- 
ited courage  when  they  have  spectators  whose  pres- 
ence buoys  them  up,  but  they  would  funk  a  fence  in 
a  lonely  field.  For  that  matter,  I  wonder  how  many 
of  us  could  pass  La  Rochefoucauld's  test  of  courage 
when  he  says:  "True  bravery  is  shown  by  performing 
without  witnesses  what  one  might  be  capable  of  doing 
before  all  the  world." 


JUMPING  129 

Then,  again,  there  are  those  who  persist  in  hunting 
and  jumping,  although  they  are  constantly  "kivered 
all  over  with  the  creeps."  Possibly  we  may  wonder 
why  they  thus  turn  hunting,  which  is  supposed  to  be 
a  pleasure,  into  a  duty,  but  one  cannot  help  admiring 
them  for  being  too  proud  to  admit,  even  to  themselves, 
that  they  are  afraid,  or  for  refusing  to  be  robbed  of 
"  their  courage  which  is  not  fearlessness  but  self-re- 
spect." After  all,  "the  beginning  of  all  aristocracy 
is  the  subjugation  of  fear." 


CHAPTER  IX 
HUNTING 

"Boys  to  the  Hunting  field 
Though  'tis  November, 
The  wind's  in  the  south, 

But  a  word  ere  we  start : 
However  excited,  you'll  please  to  remember, 
That  hunting's  a  science  and  riding  's  an  art; 
The  fox  takes  precedence  of  all  from  the  covert. 
The  hunter's  an  animal  purposely  bred 
After  the  pack  to  be  ridden,  not  over ; 
Hounds  were  not  reared  to  be  knocked  on  the  head." 

On  the  principle,  I  suppose,  that  we  should  all  learn 
something  of  everything,  and  everything  of  some- 
thing, we  find  that  although  many  riders  have  a  smat- 
tering of  the  different  branches  of  horsemanship,  but 
few  excel  in  more  than  one  line.  In  the  show  ring 
we  notice  that,  with  but  few  exceptions,  the  crack 
riders  of  saddle  horses  rarely  compete  over  the  jumps, 
and,  for  that  matter,  even  those  who  can  jump  a  horse 
cleverly  are  not  by  that  same  token  necessarily  good 
cross-country  riders.  On  the  other  hand,  hunting  men 
and  women  are,  as  a  rule,  deficient  in  the  knowledge 
of  that  technic  which  enables  them  to  show  a  horse 
with  success,  but  they  do  possess,  in  order  to  ride 
across  country  well,  quick  judgment,  natural  common 
sense,  a  good  eye  for  a  jump  and  for  a  country.  They 
must  be  able,  almost  the  moment  they  jump  into  a 
field,  to  know  instinctively  where  to  get  out;  they  must 
be  a  good  judge  of  pace,  be  sufficiently  versed  in  horse- 
manship to  understand  how  to  get  every  ounce  out  of 

130 


HUNTING  131 

their  horse  without  unduly  fatiguing  him,  and,  above 
all,  they  should  know  his  capabilities  for  jumping 
and  his  endurance. 

Hunting  is  a  distinct  art  in  itself.  For  as  Whyte 
Melville  aptly  puts  it:  "There  is  a  right  and  a  wrong 
way  of  traversing  every  acre  of  ground  that  lies  be- 
tween the  fences."  The  only  way  to  acquire  pro- 
ficiency at  hunting  is  simply  by  hunting  itself — and 
yet  more  hunting.  Practice  over  artificial  jumps, 
where  the  take  off  and  landing  are  level,  will  never 
achieve  this  result. 

Cub-hunting  before  the  regular  season  opens  is, 
perhaps,  the  best  way  not  only  to  learn  the  etiquette 
of  the  field  and  the  manner  in  which  it  is  best  to  cross 
a  country,  but  also  the  fascinating  mystery  of  " hound" 
work,  without  a  knowledge  of  which  hunting  must 
lose  as  much  of  its  charm  as  music  would  were  one 
unable  to  detect  one  note  from  another. 

Moreover,  out  cubbing  one  usually  meets  only  those 
people  who  really  love  hunting,  for  it  takes  a  lot  of 
enthusiasm  to  get  up  at  four  or  five,  on  a  chilly  morn- 
ing, and  go  to  the  meet  sustained  only  by  the  contents 
of  a  "thermos"  bottle. 

Cub-hunting  is  not  severe,  and  there  is  little  jump- 
ing done,  for  crops  are  still  in  the  ground  and  the 
fences  are  still  "blind"  (covered  with  underbrush  and 
growth),  but  it  is  an  excellent  way  in  which  to  fit 
one's  horse  as  well  as  oneself  for  the  regular  season. 
The  latter  is  a  point  too  often  neglected,  but  is  as 
important,  if  one  wishes  really  to  enjoy  the  season, 
as  keeping  one's  horses  fit.  I  know  of  one  amusing 
incident  when  a  well-known  sportsman  turned  to  his 
stud  groom,  saying:  "I  am  going  away  for  six  weeks; 
be  sure  you  have  my  horses  fit  and  ready."    As  the 


132  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

gentleman  walked  away  his  confidential  man  touched 
his  hat  and  said:  "I  beg  pardon,  sir,  might  I  make  a 
remark?  Will  you  kindly  see  you  are  fit  yourself, 
sir." 

The  only  thing  that  a  book  can  contribute  toward 
the  hunting  knowledge  of  the  novice  is,  possibly,  a 
suggestion  or  two  as  to  the  best  way  of  handling  the 
every-day  obstacles  and  difficulties  that  will  be  met 
in  the  course  of  an  ordinary  hunting  day,  plus  a  few 
hints  on  the  unwritten  laws  of  etiquette  which  govern 
fox-hunting. 

A  horse  in  good  hunting  condition  should  be  able 
to  hunt  at  least  twice  a  week,  and  possibly  more, 
depending  on  the  individual  animal  and  on  the  length 
of  time  he  was  out  the  preceding  hunting  day.  We 
should,  of  course,  always  endeavor  to  spare  our  mount 
as  much  fatigue  as  possible,  and  have  him  led  to  the 
meet  while  we  motor  or  drive  there  ourselves.  In  this 
manner  one  can  even  hunt  at  meets  which  are  a  dis- 
tance of  fifteen  miles  from  home.  Were  one  obliged, 
however,  to  ride  to  the  meet,  I  do  not  think  that  the 
average  person  would  enjoy  the  day's  hunting  if  he  or 
she  had  attempted  to  hack  more  than  a  distance  of  eight 
miles.  In  any  case,  whether  the  horse  is  led  or  ridden, 
he  should  start  early  enough  to  cover  the  distance  at 
a  walk  or  easy  jog,  and  I  would  dismiss  any  groom  of 
mine  who  was  guilty  of  arriving  at  the  meet  with  a 
horse  whose  coat  was  at  all  turned  by  sweat.  Although 
many  people  deem  it  "smart"  to  be  late  at  the  meet, 
there  is  nothing  so  conducive  to  the  horse  being  up- 
set and  going  badly  as  to  have  the  rider  jump  hur- 
riedly into  the  saddle  at  the  eleventh  hour,  without 
leaving  time  to  tighten  up  girths  or  balance  strap.  It 
is  well,  perhaps,  in  hunting,  as  in  other  things,  to  re- 


o 

1 

— 

- 


Ph   ■ . 


—  o 
-  ~ 
o    - 


—  — 
a  - 

O  '= 

'/  9 

•  -  ■- 

-  — 


- 


—      r. 


--     - 
-^    - 


-     o 


■/.    — 


■        - 


HUNTING  133 

member  what  Louis  XIV  said:  " Punctuality  is  the 
politeness  of  Kings." 

If  the  meet  is  a  large  one  there  will  be  undoubtedly 
many  out  merely  "to  see,  others  to  be  seen,  some  for  the 
ride  out,  others  for  the  ride  'ome,  some  for  happetites, 
some  for  'ealth,  some  to  get  away  from  their  wives, 
and  a  few  to  hunt."  And  one  must  be  careful,  there- 
fore, not  to  be  trapped  into  a  lengthy  chat  or  much 
" coffee-housing,"  but  rather  keep  a  good  watch  out 
so  as  to  be  in  a  good  position  when  hounds  move  off 
to  covert.  For  although,  of  course,  while  a  covert  is 
being  drawn,  the  field  must  never  move  away  before 
the  hounds,  nevertheless,  if  you  are  not  alert  you 
may  lose,  in  the  first  few  moments,  many  an  oppor- 
tunity to  get  well  away,  and  what  is  lost  then  will 
take  an  unnecessary  amount  out  of  your  horse  when 
trying  to  make  it  up  later.  On  the  other  hand,  if  you 
do  not  intend  to  ride  hard  and  straight  and  jump 
every  fence  in  your  way,  you  should  take  a  more  back- 
ward position  in  the  line  to  covert-side,  for  nothing  is 
so  annoying  for  the  rest  of  the  field  as  to  have  an 
ignoramus  sailing  out  in  front,  and  at  the  last  moment 
pulling  off  of  a  fence  and  upsetting  every  one's  horse. 

Once  the  covert-side  has  been  reached  silence  should 
be  more  or  less  observed.  The  Master's  temper  will 
be  spoiled,  or  a  fox  will  be  turned  back  into  covert 
very  quickly  by  the  chatter  and  laughter  of  women, 
who,  for  the  most  part,  are  out  to  be  seen  and  heard 
rather  than  to  hunt.  "I  do  not  say  that  you  are 
never  to  open  your  mouth,  but  I  think  that  if  the 
inmates  of  your  deaf-and-dumb  asylums  kept  hounds 
they  would  show  sport  far  above  the  average,  and 
would  seldom  go  home  without  blood."  (Whyte 
Melville.)     On  the  whole,  it  is  also  best  to  leave  any 


134  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

hallos  on  viewing  a  fox,  or  "  tally-hos,"  to  the  hunt 
servants  or  old-time  members  of  the  hunt,  who  are 
more  apt  to  know  what  hounds  are  about  than  you. 

If  you  are  riding  a  kicker,  have  a  red  bow  put  on 
his  tail,  and  endeavor  to  keep  away  from  hounds  and 
other  horses  as  much  as  possible;  don't,  however,  in- 
dulge in  the  selfish  trick  of  putting  the  badge  of  danger 
on  a  horse  who  doesn't  require  it  for  the  sake  of  getting 
more  room  in  a  crowd. 

As  a  general  rule,  it  is  annoying  to  the  huntsman  to 
have  the  field  trail  after  him  into  covert,  but  our 
American  coverts  are  so  large  that  in  order  to  follow 
the  excellent  and  simple  advice  that  "if  one  wants  to 
be  near  hounds  you  must  keep  as  close  to  them  as  ever 
you  can,"  one  is  perforce  bound  to  go  into  covert. 
Some  people,  wishing  to  avoid  the  unpleasantness  of 
pushing  through  the  underbrush,  rely  on  their  knowl- 
edge of  the  country  and  their  fund  of  hunting  lore  to 
find  hounds  again  should  they  happen  to  start  a  fox 
out  of  the  far  side  of  the  covert.  Some  men  are  able  to 
tell  so  accurately  which  way  the  fox  will  break  that  they 
never  fail  to  get  a  good  start.  But  not  all  of  us  are 
so  gifted,  and,  as  a  rule,  I  have  found  that  cautious 
riding  through  the  coverts  at  a  discreet  distance  from 
hounds  and  huntsman  often  saves  one  many  miles  of 
futile  and  excited  galloping  around  the  outsides  of 
them  after  false  alarms.  One  thing  must,  however, 
be  remembered,  that  although  there  may  be  many 
things  more  annoying  to  the  field  at  large,  nothing  is 
so  calculated  to  rouse  the  just  and  righteous  anger 
of  the  Master  as  the  person  who  rides  all  over  his 
hounds,  or,  worse  yet,  jumps  on  them.  It  is  often,  I 
grant,  difficult  to  "hold  hard"  when  the  rest  of  the 
field  keeps  surging  on  past  one,  and  possibly  the  best 


HUNTING  135 

way  of  keeping  to  the  front  and  yet  avoiding  the  danger 
of  riding  over  hounds  is  (when  fortunate  enough  to 
know  the  lay  of  the  land)  to  choose  a  line  well  to  the 
side  of  the  pack,  taking  care,  of  course,  that  plenty  of 
room  is  left  in  case  they  should  turn  sharply.  In  this 
position  one  can  ride  up  farther  than  were  one  directly 
behind  them. 

There  are  some  fortunate  people  who  are  blessed 
with  a  marvellous  "bump  of  location,"  and  who,  even 
in  a  new  country,  are  almost  unerringly  able  to  choose 
their  own  line,  but  not  all  of  us  have  this  faculty.  I  per- 
sonally am  one  of  those  unfortunates  who  can  quite 
successfully  lose  myself  in  my  own  back  yard,  and 
many  of  my  friends  tease  me  by  saying  that  the  real 
reason  why  I  ride  straight  to  hounds  is  because  if  I 
didn't  I  would  become  irretrievably  lost.  This  fail- 
ing on  my  part  always  rather  worried  me  until  I  heard 
that  Captain  " Doggie"  Smith,  who  was  at  one  time 
considered  one  of  the  best  over  Leicestershire,  once 
jumped  into  a  field  in  front  of  the  house  in  which  he 
was  staying  and  asked  where  he  was! 

For  the  newcomer  to  a  country,  or  for  those  like 
myself,  to  whom  their  native  heath  seems  always  new 
and  unfamiliar,  it  is  perhaps  wiser  to  pick  out  as  a 
sort  of  " pilot"  some  man  in  the  field  who  rides  straight 
and  hard.  One  should,  however,  never  let  the  pilot 
know  what  function  he  is  performing,  for  it  is  ex- 
tremely annoying  to  feel  that  one  is  responsible  for 
another's  falls  and  mishaps.  In  hunting  for  the  first 
time  in  a  strange  country  I  have  often  chosen  a  pilot, 
but  it  was  not  until  I,  in  turn,  was  one  day  so  chosen, 
when  hunting  with  the  Ward  Union  Staghounds  in 
Ireland,  that  I  realized  how  very  irritating  it  was.  My 
follower  was  a  merry  soul,  mounted  on  a  hired  nag 


136  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

whose  capabilities  were  far  from  being  as  great  as  the 
ambitions  of  his  rider.  But,  although  this  unfortunate 
woman  had  goodness  knows  how  many  falls  during 
her  pursuit  of  me  (and  I  thought  several  times  that  I 
had  managed  to  shake  her)  she  always  bobbed  up  again, 
each  time  more  heavily  plastered  with  mud.  Nothing 
daunted,  at  the  end  of  the  run  she  rode  up  to  me  with 
a  beam  on  her  face  and  thanked  me  profusely  for 
giving  her  such  a  " splendid  run." 

There  is  a  certain  etiquette  in  negotiating  fences 
which  must  be  as  strictly  observed  by  the  women  as 
by  the  men  in  the  field.  Although  in  Ireland  men 
often  say  "after  you"  to  a  woman  approaching  a  bank, 
as  a  general  rule  it  is  up  to  the  women  to  share  the 
discomforts  and  dangers  of  the  field  without  expect- 
ing any  particular  courtesy  from  the  men.  There  is 
no  reason  on  earth  why  a  man  should  lose  a  run  in 
order  to  pull  a  rail  down  for  a  woman,  or  hold  a  gate 
open  beyond  the  ordinary  length  of  time  that  he 
would  in  decency  allow  the  next  rider,  be  it  man  or 
woman,  to  pass  through.  Men  are  always  most  gal- 
lant in  assisting  a  woman  to  remount  after  a  fall,  but 
for  my  part  I  never  consider  it  my  due,  but  always 
think  it  extraordinarily  nice  of  them  to  do  so.  Of 
course  if  a  rider  is  hurt,  or  is  caught  in  a  nasty  place,  it 
is  only  common  humanity  to  stop  and  help,  be  it  man 
or  woman;  or  if  a  lost  horse  passes,  to  attempt  to  catch 
him  and  fasten  him,  when  possible,  to  the  next  tree  or 
fence.  But  as  a  general  rule  for  men  and  women 
alike,  it  is  sauve  qui  pent  in  the  hunting  field,  and 
the  devil  take  the  hindmost. 

Two  people  should  never  attempt  to  jump  one 
panel  at  the  same  time,  and  if  only  one  panel  in  a 
fence  is  jumpable,  then  each  rider  should  take  his 


HUNTING  137 

turn  at  it.  The  etiquette  of  the  field  is  that  after  a 
refusal  you  must  at  once  go  to  the  "end  of  the  line," 
for  nothing  is  more  annoying  to  the  rest  of  the  field 
than  the  persistent  refuser,  who  tries  again  and  again 
at  the  same  panel,  eventually  making  all  the  other 
horses  refuse.  Had  he  waited  for  a  lead,  he  might 
have  gotten  away  in  half  the  time.  Excepting  in 
countries  where  there  is  much  wire,  there  seems  no 
reason  for  the  single-file  approach  to  fences  that  one 
sees  so  much  over  here,  and  one  can  only  explain  it 
by  saying  that  possibly  most  people  prefer  a  goose- 
like manner  of  progression  to  acquiring  the  courage 
necessary  to  take  the  " first  bloom  off  a  fence." 

Even  more  disagreeable,  and  far  more  dangerous 
than  the  refuser,  is  the  person  who  doesn't  wait  until 
the  rider  in  front  is  well  over  the  jump,  but  jumps 
almost  into  his  pocket.  As  a  general  rule,  when  such 
a  person  is  out,  I  prefer  to  have  him  ride  in  front  of 
me  rather  than  behind,  for,  in  case  of  a  fall,  the  one 
that  is  leading  will  be  jumped  on  and  get  the  worst 
of  it!  Of  course,  there  are  times  in  which  one  is 
mounted  on  a  hot-tempered  horse,  when  all  of  us 
have  inadvertently  committed  this  crime,  but  if  we 
were  called  down  for  it,  or,  more  likely,  sworn  at  for 
doing  it,  we  rightly  deserved  it.  The  horse  that 
can't  be  held  in  the  field  has  no  business  there  but 
should  be  taken  home.  Equally  dangerous,  and  even 
less  excusable,  is  the  abominable  habit  of  cutting 
diagonally  across  and  jumping  some  one  else's  panel, 
thereby  either  causing  the  other  horse  to  refuse,  or 
upsetting  him  so  that  he  bungles  the  jump.  The 
rider  who  is  approaching  the  fence  in  a  straight  line, 
even  if  he  is  farther  away  from  it  than  you  are,  always 
has  the  right  of  way. 


138  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

For  the  sake  of  others,  as  well  as  for  your  own, 
don't  change  your  mind  once  you  have  selected  your 
panel.  Your  horse  will  jump  a  big  jump  cleaner  and 
better  if  he  is  put  at  it  straight,  and  your  mind  is 
made  up,  than  if  he  is  waveringly  and  diagonally  put 
at  a  far  smaller  one.  A  horse  that  swerves  should  be 
kept  as  much  away  from  a  crowd  at  a  jump  as  pos- 
sible, and  the  hot-headed  horse  should  be  allowed  to 
go  well  out  in  front,  or  on  a  line  of  his  own,  so  that  he 
will  get  the  impression  that  he  is  in  the  lead.  On  the 
other  hand,  the  sluggish  animal  or  refuser  should  be 
ridden  so  that  he  will  be  given  a  lead  over  his 
jumps. 

As  the  true  test  of  horsemanship  in  the  hunting 
field  is  to  finish  a  run  with  the  least  possible  exertion 
to  the  horse,  one  should  never  lark  over  jumps  to  show 
off,  or  jump  a  big  panel  when  a  little  fence  will  do 
as  well.  Out  hunting  you  never  know  what  efforts 
may  be  required  of  your  horse  before  the  day  is 
over. 

If  you  have  time  to  do  much  choosing  of  a  fence 
without  interfering  with  your  neighbor's  line,  you 
should  always  select  a  big  jump,  with  a  good  take  off 
and  landing,  to  a  smaller  one  with  the  reverse.  As  a 
rule,  a  fairly  thick  top  rail  is  safer  than  a  thin  round 
one,  which  the  horse  may  attempt  to  crash  through, 
and  old  rails  are,  of  course,  preferable  to  young  sap- 
lings, which,  in  common  with  sheep  hurdles,  are  apt 
to  snap  back  if  the  horse  hits  them. 

As  a  general  rule,  the  middle  of  a  panel  is  its  weak- 
est spot,  and  most  likely  to  break,  but  if  there  is  any 
suspicion  of  wire  being  present,  or  if  the  fence  has 
much  wire  on  it,  with  only  a  binder  at  the  top,  the 
safest  thing  to  jump  is  the  post.     In  Australia,  where 


HUNTING  139 

horses  are  taught  to  jump  wire,*  they  learn  to  gauge 
the  size  of  the  fence  by  the  height  of  the  post,  and  I 
have  heard  of  amusing  instances  when  an  Australian 
horse  has  jumped  his  rider  off  by  suddenly  and  un- 
expectedly leaping  over  an  imaginary  fence  in  perfect 
form  when  merely  ridden  between  two  posts. 

One  occasionally  hears  methods  by  which,  on  a 
pinch,  an  ordinary  American  or  English  hunter  may 
get  safely  over  a  wire  fence  by  putting  a  handkerchief 
over  the  top  strand,  but  I  would  prefer  to  leave  such 
tricks  to  others,  and  try  in  some  way  to  get  around  the 
wire.  I  have,  on  one  occasion,  jumped  four  strands 
of  clean  barbed  wire,  but  you  may  be  quite  sure  that 
I  did  not  do  it  intentionally.  Unfortunately,  more 
and  more  land  is  being  ruined  for  hunting,  here  as  well 
as  abroad,  by  the  presence  of  wire.  Although  less 
durable,  it  is  a  cheaper  fence  for  the  farmer  to  erect, 
and  is,  in  his  case,  quite  excusable,  but  it  is  out- 
rageous when  wealthy  landowners,  who  live  in  a 
hunting  community  and  actually  go  out  with  hounds, 
incase  their  property  with  high  and  impenetrable 
fences,  as  is  done,  for  instance,  in  certain  fashionable 
sections  of  Long  Island. 

Stone  walls,  as  a  rule,  look  smaller  than  their  actual 
height,  but,  owing  to  their  solidity  of  appearance,  horses 
jump  them  very  well.  This  is  also  the  case  with  stone 
walls  which  have  a  "rider"  or  wooden  rail  on  top. 
Snake  fences  are  jumped  as  ordinary  timber,  taking 
care  that  one  is  straight  at  the  panel,  and  that  one 
avoids,  as  far  as  possible,  the  pointed  " forks"  where 

*  The  M.  F.  H.  of  the  Ashburton  Hunt,  in  New  Zealand,  wrote:  "We 
think  very  little  of  ordinary  wire,  but  a  barbed  and  double — a  fence 
with  barbed  wire  each  side  of  a  bank,  sometimes  six  feet  apart  and  four 
feet  high — takes  a  good  lot  of  jumping."     So  one  might  imagine! 


140  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

the  rails  meet  and  which  might  stake  a  horse  should 
he  swerve. 

Over  most  all  of  these  fences  a  fair  hunting  pace  may 
be  taken,  but  no  matter  how  fast  the  horse  is  going, 
he  should  always  be  well  in  hand  and  not  allowed  to 
sprawl.  At  trappy  places,  or  drops,  the  horse  must  be 
pulled  up,  and  in  negotiating  an  "in  and  out, "  in  which 
the  fences  are  near  together,  he  must  not  be  allowed 
to  go  down  at  it  so  slowly  that  he  will  refuse,  nor  so 
fast  that  he  will  be  too  close  to  the  second  fence  to 
jump  it  well.  Should  he  refuse  in  an  "in  and  out" 
it  will  be  difficult  to  get  him  out  of  it  neatly,  and  in 
order  to  do  so  he  must  be  turned  around  and  whirled 
sharply  at  the  second  fence. 

A  picket  or  slat  fence  is  rather  a  formidable-looking 
affair  but  will  usually  break  easily,  should  one  be  so 
fortunate  as  to  be  approaching  on  the  side  on  which 
the  posts  are  placed.  The  ledge  on  top  of  a  slat  fence 
is,  however,  likely  to  give  a  horse  a  big  knee  should 
he  hit  it. 

The  manner  in  which  the  ground,  lying  between  the 
fences,  is  traversed  is  almost  of  as  much  importance  in 
hunting  as  the  actual  jumping  itself.  Plough  should 
be  taken  as  slowly  as  is  consistent  with  keeping  up 
with  hounds,  and  the  ridges  should  be  either  ridden 
down  lengthwise,  or  else  diagonally,  and  should  never 
be  taken  crosswise.  Fields  in  which  corn  stubble  re- 
mains standing  should  also  be  crossed  with  care,  for 
the  stalks  are  often  very  sharp,  and  I  have  known  of 
good  hunters  being  lamed  for  the  season  by  step- 
ping on  them.  In  riding  through  our  dense  Ameri- 
can coverts  it  is  generally  wisest  to  let  the  horse  pick 
his  own  way  and  confine  one's  attention  to  keeping 
the  branches  out  of  one's  eyes  by  an  uplifted  right 


HUNTING  141 

arm  and  crop.  Care  must  be  taken  not  to  brush 
through  the  branches  so  that  they  will  snap  back  into 
the  face  of  the  person  behind.  If  one  comes  across 
an  unexpected  hole  one  should  immediately  call  out 
"ware  hole,"  to  warn  the  rest  of  the  field. 

In  jumping  toward  the  sun  a  horse  is  often  blinded, 
and  precautions  should  be  taken  that  he  sees  the 
jump  clearly  before  he  is  sent  at  it.  In  a  hilly  coun- 
try one  sometimes  is  able  to  spare  one's  mount  much 
fatigue  by  going  around  the  base  of  the  hills  instead 
of  over  the  tops,  but,  of  course,  this  must  never  be 
attempted  at  the  expense  of  losing  hounds.  A  very 
steep  descent  should  always  be  taken  in  a  straight, 
rather  than  in  an  oblique,  line,  for  if  the  horse  were  to 
slip  in  the  former  case,  he  would  merely  slide  onto  his 
hindquarters,  whereas  were  he  going  down  slanting- 
wise  he  might  roll  over  onto  his  side.  One  sometimes 
hears  this  statement  refuted,  but  I  think  that  any 
one  who  has  seen  the  marvellous  feats  of  the  Italian 
cavalry,  who  slide  down  absolutely  straight  inclines 
as  steep  as  the  side  of  a  house,  will  not  be  likely  to 
argue  the  point.  In  mounting  a  hill,  however,  the 
zigzag  course  is  the  wiser,  as  it  spares  the  horse  con- 
siderably. The  rider  should,  of  course,  lean  as  far 
forward  as  possible  and,  if  necessary,  grasp  the  horse's 
mane  in  order  to  do  so. 

Above  all,  and  beyond  all  else,  if  one  wishes,  in  hunt- 
ing, to  keep  in  the  good  graces  of  the  M.  F.  H.,  and 
of  the  Hunt's  Committee,  one  should  never  ride  over 
"crops"  or  newly  seeded  land.  Undoubtedly  most  of 
us,  in  the  excitement  of  a  run,  have  broken  this  law 
as  well  as  every  other  unwritten  law  of  hunting,  but 
when  we  do  break  them  we  must  expect  to  be  called 
down  by  the  Master  or  by  other  members  of  the  field. 


142  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

If  that  calling  down  is  not  exactly  in  the  manner  of 
the  drawing-room,  we  must  remember  that  in  our 
excitement  we  have  probably  often  used  the  same 
sort  of  language  ourselves.  Out  hunting,  a  good  rule 
to  follow  is  that  "when  a  man  apologizes  and  is  evi- 
dently sorry,  you  ought  to  accept  his  apologies  in  a 
kindly  spirit,  even  though  he  has  jumped  on  the 
small  of  your  back."  After  all,  in  the  hunting  field, 
as  elsewhere,  "the  test  of  good  manners  is  being  able 
to  put  up  pleasantly  with  bad  ones." 


CHAPTER  X 

HUNTING  ABROAD 

"One  hour  of  glorious  life  is  worth  an  age  without  a  name." 

Before  closing  the  subject,  a  few  words  about  hunt- 
ing in  the  true  home  of  the  sport  may  not  be  amiss. 
There  were,  before  the  war,  in  the  British  Isles,  on  an 
area  only  a  little  larger  than  the  State  of  Pennsyl- 
vania, 390  packs  of  foxhounds,  staghounds,  and  har- 
riers, to  say  nothing  of  12  packs  of  draghounds,  while 
here  in  America  we  have  in  all  only  56  packs  of  hounds. 

The  difference  is  partly  due  to  the  fact  that  the 
sport  in  England  and  Ireland  is  of  such  ancient  origin 
that  "when  hunting  was  the  labour  of  the  savages  of 
North  America,  it  was  but  the  amusement  of  the 
gentlemen  of  England."  Partly,  too,  because  over 
there  every  man,  woman,  and  child  loves  sport  and 
is  a  horseman  after  a  fashion;  because  horse-raising 
is  indulged  in  far  more  extensively  than  here,  and 
even  the  humblest  farmers  and  peasants  take  a 
keen  interest  in  the  sport.  When  you  are  hacking 
home  after  a  day's  run,  they  stop  you  to  ask  how  the 
hounds  went,  and  where  you  killed,  and  how  long  a 
point  the  fox  made,  and  finish  by  offering  you  a  cup 
of  tea.  In  and  out  of  season,  the  whole  countryside 
is  enthusiastic  about  hunting  and  about  horses  and 
hounds,  and  nearly  all  farmers  walk  two  or  more 
couples  of  puppies  for  the  kennels,  and  take  great 
pride  in  their  charges  when  they  compete  at  the 
annual  puppy  show. 

143 


144  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

But  it  is  not  only  the  difference  in  the  sporting  in- 
stincts of  the  people  that  accounts  for  the  greater 
sway  of  hunting  over  there  than  here.  The  chief 
reason  why  it  flourishes  with  them,  as  it  never  can 
with  us,  is  because  England's  " infernal  climate"  is 
just  suited  to  it,  and  ours  is  not.  After  all,  Ruskin 
was  right  when  he  said,  "There  is  no  such  thing  as 
bad  weather;  only  different  kinds  of  good  weather," 
and  the  rains,  and  fog  and  damp' that  make  the  Ameri- 
can shiver  and  shake  in  England,  are  the  very  things 
that  not  only  produce  the  wonderful  green  and  springy 
" galloping  turf"  for  which  the  " right  little,  tight  little 
island  "  is  famed,  but  also  permit  scent  to  lie  in  a  way 
that  is  impossible  over  here. 

American  people  are  becoming  more  and  more  in- 
terested in  hunting,  and  the  breeding  of  English  as 
well  as  American  hounds  is  being  gone  into  almost, 
if  not  quite,  as  scientifically  as  abroad,  but  in  spite  of 
all,  hunting  over  here,  much  as  Americans  may  resent 
this  bald  statement,  will,  I  am  afraid,  always  be  far 
inferior  to  what  it  is  over  there.  No  matter  how  keen 
Masters  of  the  Fields  may  be,  no  matter  how  well- 
bred  the  hounds  and  horses,  the  element  of  dampness, 
so  necessary  to  the  highest  attainment  of  the  sport, 
will  always  be  lacking. 

Our  dry  hot  climate  is  far  better  suited  to  the  game 
of  polo,  at  which  we  are  rapidly  excelling  all  other 
nations,  than  it  is  for  hunting.  And  one  day  I  think 
polo  will  be  as  much  of  a  national  institution  with  us 
as  hunting  is  in  England  and  Ireland. 

For  those  persons  intending  to  hunt  abroad,  I  would 
suggest  that  if  they  want  to  have  a  successful  sea- 
son they  make  their  arrangements  well  beforehand. 
Horses  and  rooms  at  Melton  Mowbray,  Market  Har- 


HUNTING  ABROAD  145 

borough,  or  Leicester,  which  are  the  hunting  centres 
for  the  famous  Shires,*  are  as  scarce  as  hens'  teeth. 
Unless  one  happens  to  own  horses  who  have  been 
previously  hunted  abroad,  or  one  is  fortunate  enough 
to  possess  a  facility  for  building  natural  English  jumps, 
over  which  to  school  them  at  home,  it  would  be  wiser 
perhaps  to  purchase  abroad,  or  else  "job"  (hire)  the 
required  number  of  animals,  once  over  there.  This  is 
even  more  necessary  in  Ireland  than  in  England,  for, 
whereas  a  bold  big  jumper  might,  after  a  very  short 
time,  learn  to  cross  even  Leicestershire  quite  brilliantly, 
no  American  horse  could  reasonably  be  expected  to 
negotiate  the  enormous  banks  one  meets  in  Ireland 
without  previous  experience. 

Whereas  in  this  country  it  is  almost  impossible  to 
hire  even  a  half-way  decent  horse  to  carry  one  to 
hounds,  over  there  every  hunting  community  has 
several  "job  masters,"  who  make  a  business  of  hiring 
out  horses,  and  who  will  provide  you  with  very  good 
nags;  often  making  the  agreement  that  you  will  be 
supplied  with  a  certain  fixed  number  of  horses  per 
week,  and  if  one  goes  lame,  sick  or  sorry,  supplant 
him  by  another  without  any  extra  cost.  I  hunted, 
in  Ireland,  with  the  Meath  and  Ward  Union  hounds, 
entirely  on  hired  horses,  and  found  one  or  two  such 
excellent  performers  that,  had  they  been  as  sound  as 
one  might  desire,  I  would  have  brought  them  home 
with  me.  One  in  particular  was  a  well-bred  little 
black,  with  a  beautiful  mouth,  plenty  of  speed,  and 
no  bank  was  too  big  for  him.  In  fact,  among  my  en- 
tire lot  of  horses  there  was  only  one  who  was  not  good 

*  Hunting  men  apply  the  term  Shires  to  those  districts  hunted  by 
the  Quorn,  the  Belvoir,  Cottesmore,  Mr.  Fernies,  the  Pytchley;  all 
other  districts  being  termed  the  Provinces. 


146  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

enough,  or  fast  enough,  for  me  to  keep  up  with  the 
first  flight. 

Owing  to  the  excellent  system  of  being  able  to 
"train"  horses  almost  directly  to  the  meet,  one  is 
able  to  hunt  at  far  greater  distances  from  home  than 
one  would  over  here.  During  my  winter  in  Ireland  I 
used  Dublin  as  my  hunting  headquarters,  and  was 
able  to  hunt  often  as  far  as  forty  or  fifty  miles  away. 
The  horses,  in  common  with  scores  of  others,  were 
sent  on  to  a  town  near  the  meet  by  train,  and  in  the 
evening  the  cars  were  waiting  for  them  to  bring  them 
home  again.  The  riders  and  owners,  meanwhile, 
travelled  in  the  railway  carriages  behind,  or  preferably 
by  motor. 

On  joining  a  hunt  one  should  immediately  send  the 
proper  subscription  to  the  hunt  secretary,  whose  name 
and  address,  as  well  as  other  valuable  information 
about  hunting  abroad,  may  be  found  in  Bailey's  Hunt- 
ing Directory.  At  some  meets  in  England,  and  at 
most  in  Ireland,  in  addition  to  the  subscription,  a 
" capping"  system  is  in  vogue — a  sort  of  "passing  the 
hat,"  which  takes  place  as  one  rides  from  the  meet  to 
the  covert-side. 

There  is  nothing  prettier  in  the  world  than  the  sight 
of  an  English  meet.  The  riders  are  nearly  all  well 
turned  out,  and  before  the  war  "scarlet"  predominated. 
The  hounds  are  evenly  marked,  alike  as  peas  in  a 
pod,  and  are,  from  a  point  of  looks,  far  superior  to  any 
pack  of  native  American  foxhounds. 

We  have  neither  time  nor  space  to  go  into  the  much- 
discussed  question  as  to  whether  or  not  the  English 
hound  is,  or  ever  will  become,  well  enough  adapted  to 
hunt  the  wilder  American  fox  under  conditions  very 
different  from  those  prevailing  in  England.    Men  of 


HUNTING  ABROAD  147 

equal  prominence  as  sportsmen  and  huntsmen,  are 
ranged  on  both  sides  of  the  question.  Mr.  Thomas 
Hitchcock  and  Mr.  Harry  Smith,  for  example,  main- 
tain that  the  nose  of  the  English  hound  is  not  keen 
enough  for  our  dry  climate,  or  for  picking  up  a  cold 
trail  in  this  country,  where  " earths"  are  not  stopped 
as  they  are  in  England,  and  consequently  the  fox  can 
go  to  ground  when  hard  pressed.  Moreover,  the 
English  hound  has  been  trained  to  work  in  a  pack, 
rather  than  as  an  individual  like  the  American  fox- 
hound, who  is  therefore  better  adapted  to  cope  with 
our  larger,  wilder,  and  rougher  woodlands,  where  at 
times  he  has  to  be  totally  independent  of  any  aid  from 
the  huntsman. 

On  the  other  hand,  men  like  Mr.  Charles  Mather,  of 
the  Brandywine  Hunt,  and  Mr.  A.  H.  Higginson,  of 
the  Middlesex,  claim  that  the  English  hound,  when 
bred  in  this  country  (and  not  merely  a  "drafted" 
hound,  sent  away  from  England  because  of  some  fault), 
can  be  developed  so  as  to  be  quite  as  capable  of  hunt- 
ing the  fox  in  America  as  the  native  hound,  and  is 
more  amenable  to  discipline,  and  breeds  closer  to 
type.  These  gentlemen  have  demonstrated  the  truth 
of  their  contention  by  giving  as  good  sport  with  their 
pure-bred  English  hounds  as  may  be  found  anywhere 
in  the  country. 

The  question,  however,  as  to  whether  to  use  either 
the  pure-bred  English  hound  or  the  cross  between  the 
best  American  bitches  and  English  hounds,  or  the 
native  American  hound,  still  remains  unsettled  in  the 
minds  of  many  hound  men.  Matches  between  the 
English  hound  and  the  American  hound,  such  as  that 
held  in  1905  in  the  Piedmont  Valley,  between  the 
Grafton  (American)  and  the  Middlesex  (English  draft), 


148  HACKS  AND   HUNTERS 

decide  little;  both  sides  still  hold  to  their  respective 
opinions.  One  thing,  however,  is  quite  certain,  that 
as  yet  the  American  hound  does  not  breed  true  to 
type.  Mr.  Charles  Mather's  statement  that  "the 
American  hound  is  not  a  distinct  breed"  may  pos- 
sibly be  disputed  by  many  hunting  men,  but  it  re- 
mains a  fact,  nevertheless,  that  as  a  "pack"  and 
irrespective  of  their  hunting  abilities,  the  motley  as- 
sortment of  ill-matched,  rather  scrawny  and  cringing 
American  hounds  compares  but  ill  with  the  upstand- 
ing, evenly  matched,  piebald  beauties  which  consti- 
tute an  English  pack,  and  which  have  been  bred  for 
generations  and  generations,  not  alone  for  their  hunt- 
ing abilities,  but  also  for  perfect  color,  markings,  and 
symmetry  of  shape.* 

Comparisons  are  odious,  and  since  I  have  already 
given  so  many  perhaps  I  should  not  go  on  to  say  that 
the  next  difference  between  an  English  or  Irish  meet 
and  an  American  one  is  its  size.  The  average  field 
of  the  Quorn,  Belvoir,  or  Pytchley,  in  England,  or  the 
Meath,  Kildere,  or  Ward  Union,  in  Ireland,  would 
make  an  election-day  crowd  of  150  at  Meadow  Brook 
look  small.  Excepting  for  the  inspiring  sight  that  it 
presents,  however,  I  think  that  most  hunting  people 
will  agree  that  a  big  field  is,  perhaps,  a  disadvantage 
rather  than  the  reverse.  In  such  large  crowds,  the 
necessity  of  getting  a  good  start  is  not  only  merely 
advisable,  but  absolutely  imperative,  if  one  wishes  to 
see  anything  of  the  run. 

If  you  want  to  be  well  accepted  in  an  English  field, 


*  The  only  packs  of  native  American  foxhounds  which  compare  at 
all  favorably  as  regards  color  and  symmetry,  are  the  ring-necked 
Madison  hounds  of  the  Orange  County  Hunt,  The  Plains,  Va.,  those 
of  the  Grafton  Hunt,  and  the  hounds  belonging  to  Mr.  Joseph  Thomas. 


HUNTING  ABROAD  149 

don't  speak  to  any  one  unless  they  speak  to  you.  The 
English  are  wonderfully  loyal  and,  bar  none,  the  best 
friends  in  the  world,  and  when  you  get  to  know  them 
you  will  perhaps  agree  with  Balzac,  that  "the  deeper 
the  feeling  the  less  demonstrative  will  be  the  expres- 
sion of  it,"  and  you  will  wish  that  there  were  more 
people  like  them.  But  as  a  nation  they  are  hard  to 
get  to  know ;  they  live  in  a  shell  of  reserve  which  they 
dislike  to  have  even  touched,  and  the  only  way  to 
get  on  with  them  is  to  retire  into  just  such  a  shell 
yourself  and  be  equally  as  exclusive  and  reserved  as 
they  are. 

If  you  are  quiet,  well-mannered,  well-dressed,  well- 
mounted,  and  above  all  show  yourself  to  be  a  fine 
horseman  or  horsewoman  and  a  good  sport,  you  will, 
before  the  end  of  the  season,  have  no  end  of  friends. 
As  Stevenson  says:  "What  religion  knits  people  so 
closely  as  a  common  sport?" 

Choosing  one's  own  line  at  home  is  often  difficult 
enough,  but  in  a  strange  land  it  is  almost  impossible 
to  attempt  it  without  running  the  risk  of  innumerable 
falls.  Unless  one  has  had  some  previous  experience, 
or  has  some  standard  of  comparison  to  go  by,  it  is 
impossible  to  judge  what  is  jumpable,  in  the  shape  of 
a  drain,  or  hedge  or  bank,  and  what  is  not.  I  remem- 
ber that  on  my  first  day  out  with  the  Meath,  all  the 
banks  looked  to  me  like  objects  in  a  nightmare,  and 
utterly  unjumpable;  but  after  the  second  and  third 
day,  when  I  had  discovered  that  these  horrible-looking 
affairs  were  not  only  jumpable,  but  quite  easily  so,  I 
went  to  the  other  extreme  and  charged  what  proved 
evidently  to  be  quite  unjumpable.  They  all  looked 
alike  to  me,  on  the  same  principle,  I  suppose,  that  to 
an    Englishman    or    an    Irishman,    unaccustomed    to 


150  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

timber,  a  4-foot  fence  looks  almost  as  formidable  as 
a  5-foot-6-inch  fence  does  to  us. 

In  choosing  a  pilot,  in  order  to  help  one  out  of  this 
difficulty,  one  must  remember  that  an  English  field 
is  usually  divided  into  those  who  comprise  the  first 
flight,  and  cut  out  the  work  for  the  others;  those  who 
follow  in  their  lead,  usually  men  and  women  of  an 
older  generation,  who  know  the  country  so  well  that 
they  can  manage  to  see  the  run  by  a  minimum  of  jump- 
ing and  a  maximum  of  short  cuts;  and  those  who,  for 
the  most  part,  '"ammer,  'ammer,  'ammer  on  the  'ard 
'ighroad,"  and  constitute  the  "Gate  Brigade."  Of  all, 
the  latter  are  the  most  difficult  and,  let  it  be  said, 
the  most  dangerous  to  follow.  It  may  sound  a  very 
simple  and  quite  infantile  matter  to  hunt  by  riding 
through  gates,  but  the  remarkable  beings  who  do  it 
have  reduced  the  opening  of  gates  with  latches  like 
Chinese  puzzles  to  a  science,  and,  a  hundred  or  so 
strong,  they  open,  push  through  en  masse,  and  close 
the  gates  with  such  rapidity  that  they  often  arrive 
before  those  who  have  ridden  hard  and  straight. 
Should  hounds  turn  sharply,  the  road  riders  then  gain 
the  advantage,  and  in  such  cases  one  feels  inclined  to 
lament  with  the  man  in  "Riding  Recollections/ 1  who 
cries  out,  "I've  spoilt  my  hat,  I've  torn  my  coat,  I've 
lamed  my  horse,  I've  had  two  falls,  I  went  first,  I'll 
take  my  oath,  from  end  to  end,  and  there's  that  d — d 
fellow  on  the  coffee-coloured  pony  gets  here  before  me 
after  all."  In  Ireland  there  is  a  road  brigade,  but  no 
gate  brigade,  for  in  that  country  gates  are  so  few  and 
far  between  that  even  if  one  were  obliged  to  pull  out 
of  a  run,  on  account  of  lameness  or  some  accident,  it 
would  be  necessary  to  jump  every  blessed  fence  again 
that  had  already  been  crossed. 


HUNTING  ABROAD  151 

It  would  be  as  absurd,  as  it  would  be  impossible,  to 
give  any  cut-and-dried  way  of  negotiating  English 
fences.  Suffice  it  to  say  that  the  variety  that  is  met 
with  is  far  greater  than  anything  encountered  over 
here.  Timber  is  scarce  and  rarely  jumped,  but  the 
mild-looking  "brush"  affairs  that  one  is  obliged  to 
jump  have  nearly  always  not  only  a  ditch  on  the  take 
off  or  landing  side,  but  are  also  as  stiff  as,  and  more 
treacherous  than,  the  stiffest  timber  that  ever  graced 
Meadow  Brook.  These  so-called  "cut  and  laid"  or 
"stake  and  bound"  fences  are  made  of  hawthorn 
hedges,  which  have  been  cut  down,  and  the  branches 
bent  sidewise  and  interlaced  until  they  form  a  springy 
but  impenetrable  barrier,  ranging  anywhere  from 
33^  to  5  feet.  When  these  same  hedges  are  not  cut 
down  but  allowed  to  grow  wild,  they  form  bullfinches, 
which,  although  disagreeable  to  negotiate,  can  be 
crashed  through  with  lowered  head  and  upraised  arm. 
True,  one  occasionally  remains  hung  in  the  branches 
while  one's  horse  goes  on,  but  then  that  is  quite  a 
novel  and  harmless  experience. 

In  addition  to  these,  one  occasionally  meets  oxers, 
either  single  or  double,  which  are  hedges  protected 
from  the  cattle  by  a  ditch  and  a  guard  rail  on  either 
one  or  both  sides.  Although  formidable-looking  ob- 
jects, any  free-going  horse  can  jump  them,  for  it  must 
not  be  forgotten  that  the  average  horse  clears  over 
twelve  feet  from  take  off  to  landing,  and  I  have  often 
seen  a  mare  of  mine,  when  schooling  on  the  long 
reins,  jump  twenty  odd  feet  in  breadth  over  five  feet 
six  inches  of  timber.  "Chappie,"  the  old-time  high 
jumper,  could,  for  example,  jump  with  ease  five  feet 
eight  inches  in  height,  covering  twenty-five  feet  in 
distance. 


152  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

Wide  brooks  are  also  often  met  with  in  the  Shires, 
among  which  the  Whissendine  is  the  most  famous, 
in  parts  being  eight  feet  and  in  others  twenty-four  feet 
in  width.  To  the  American  who  has,  perhaps,  ridden 
a  show-ring  jumper  twenty  odd  feet  over  Harry  Smith's 
cardboard  " Grafton"  jump  this  may  not  seem  much, 
but  it  must  not  be  forgotten  that  in  the  hunting  field 
jumping  an  unknown  brook,  possibly  from  a  treacher- 
ous take  off,  at  the  end  of  a  long  day,  is  quite  another 
matter.  The  precept,  "fast  at  water  and  slow  at 
timber"  has,  as  we  have  already  seen  elsewhere,  been 
often  overdone  as  regards  the  latter,  and  we  can  as 
easily  overdo  it  in  negotiating  water.  Of  course,  more 
speed  is  required  successfully  to  jump  width  than 
height,  but  the  horse  must  not  be  so  extended  that  he 
has  insufficient  reserve  energy  left  at  the  last  stride  to 
propel  him  over  the  distance.  In  urging  him  on,  a 
spur,  not  the  whip,  should  be  used.  The  latter  has, 
contrary  to  the  general  supposition,  the  effect  of  short- 
ening rather  than  lengthening  an  animal's  stride. 
This,  therefore,  applies  to  jumping  great  width  in  the 
show  rings  as  well  as  in  the  open,  and  it  is  the  good 
advice  I  received,  not  to  carry  a  whip,  that  enabled  me, 
several  years  ago,  to  make  a  gray  mare  of  mine  clear 
twenty-seven  feet  in  breadth.* 

Of  course  fences  in  England  vary,  as  elsewhere,  in 
height  and  stiffness  and  type,  according  to  the  dis- 
trict in  which  one  happens  to  be  hunting.  In  Cheshire, 
for  example,  although  the  going  is  often  rough,  and  the 
fences  "  trappy, "  they  are  smaller  than  in  the  Mid- 
lands, for  in  the  latter  counties  the  main  industry  is 
raising  horses  and  bullocks,  who  require  stronger  and 

*  The  record  is,  I  believe,  thirty-nine  feet,  a  distance  cleared  by 
the  great  mare  "Lottery,"  in  the  Liverpool  Grand  National. 


HUNTING  ABROAD  153 

larger  fences  to  keep  them  in  bounds  than  in  the  former, 
where  the  live  stock  is  chiefly  dairy  cows. 

The  ground  between  the  fences  is  also  quite  different 
from  anything  we  ever  see  over  here,  and  what  they 
consider  good  going  would  to  us  appear  a  veritable 
bog.  On  the  other  hand,  I  have  seen  Englishmen  look 
with  quite  justifiable  horror  on  our  taking  horses  out 
hunting  when  the  ground  was  as  hard  as  bricks  and 
covered  with  a  thin  coating  of  ice.  The  difference  in 
the  going  undoubtedly  accounts  for  the  fact  that 
whereas  spavins  and  curbs,  arising  from  strains  in  the 
heavy  mud,  are  very  common  over  there,  over  here 
they  are  less  frequently  met  with  than  foot  lameness, 
navicular,  laminitis,  etc. 

"Ridge  and  furrow,"  which  is  a  system  of  culti- 
vating pastureland  so  as  to  drain  off  the  surplus 
water,  is  frequently  met  with,  and  should  be  nego- 
tiated slowly  and  diagonally  in  the  same  manner  as 
if  traversing  plough.  On  the  whole,  however,  in  the 
best  sections  of  English  or  Irish  hunting  centres,  the 
miles  and  miles  of  soft  green  pastureland  that  one 
gallops  over  gives  the  American,  accustomed  to  hunt- 
ing over  plough,  corn  stubble,  or  rocks,  an  impression 
of  having  flown  to  heaven,  where  one  hunts  over  golf 
courses. 

In  Ireland  the  turf  is — if  such  a  thing  be  possible — 
even  greener  and  springier  than  in  England,  but  the 
going  is  consequently  heavier,  and  one  jumps  banks 
and  drains  with  the  horses  almost  up  to  their  hocks 
in  mud.  These  banks  are  often  ten  feet  in  height,  and 
the  drains  are  not  ditches  but  rather  yawning  chasms. 
Occasionally,  one  meets  a  "  double,"  which  consists  of 
a  drain,  a  bank,  then  another  drain,  and  yet  another 
bank,  and  it  requires  a  clever  horse  to  jump  from  the 


154  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

top  of  one  bank  to  the  other.  All  the  banks  are 
jumped  almost  from  a  standstill;  t*he  horses  leaping 
at  rather  than  on  or  over  them,  and  climbing  up  them 
like  flies  crawling  up  a  wall.  At  the  top  they  change 
their  feet  and  slide  down  the  other  side  before  jumping 
the  drain  at  the  bottom,  in  very  much  the  same  way 
that  the  Italian  cavalry  negotiate  steep  hills.  In 
Irish  horse  shows,  this  proper  changing  of  the  feet  at 
the  top  of  a  bank  is  of  utmost  importance,  and  a  horse 
is  scored  on  the  way  he  does  it,  much  in  the  way 
"ticks"  are  counted  in  this  country.  Owing  to  the 
fact  that  the  least  touch  may  bring  a  horse  jumping 
a  bank  over  on  top  of  the  rider,  the  snaffle  bridle  is 
almost  entirely  used,  and  although  I  have  heard  said 
to  the  contrary,  from  personal  experience  I  found  that 
the  best  and  safest  way  to  negotiate  an  Irish  bank  is 
to  give  the  horse  his  head  entirely  and  sit  him  very 
much  as  you  might  a  rearer.  Wide  banks,  some  of 
which  are  wide  enough  to  enable  two  or  three  men  to 
walk  on  them  abreast,  although  more  formidable  in 
appearance  than  the  narrow  ones,  are  in  reality  far 
easier  and  safer  to  jump,  for  they  give  a  foothold  to 
the  horse  and  enable  him  to  change  his  legs  prior  to 
descending,  whereas  the  narrow  ones  crumble  away 
at  a  touch. 

Every  horse  that  jumps  over  a  drain  pulls  a  bit  of 
the  turf  away  with  him,  and  it  stands  to  reason  that 
the  drain  thus  becomes  wider  and  wider,  and  conse- 
quently those  in  the  first  flight  have  it  easier  than  those 
behind,  in  direct  contrast  to  hunting  over  a  timber  or 
a  hedge  country,  where  rails  become  broken  and  gaps 
appear.  These  Irish  drains,  on  one  or  both  sides  of  a 
bank,  are  as  much  as  ten  and  twelve  feet  wide,  and  so 
deep  that  a  horse  and  rider  can  r.ide  up  and  down  the 


HUNTING  ABROAD  155 

bottom  without  being  seen.  Some  of  them  are  cov- 
ered with  underbrush,  and  if  a  horse  falls  in  he  becomes 
completely  hidden  from  view.  Falls  are  numerous, 
but  are,  as  a  rule,  not  serious,  for  the  ground  is  very- 
soft  and  the  fall  resembles  a  sort  of  scramble  rather 
than  the  swift  and  sharp  catapult  onto  a  brick-like 
ground  that  one  gets  over  timber  in  America.  The 
worst  kind  of  an  Irish  fall  is  that  in  which  the  horse 
loses  his  footing  in  climbing  up  a  bank  and  falls  back 
into  the  drain,  in  which  case  the  only  thing  to  do  is  to 
throw  yourself  away  from  him  as  quickly  as  possible 
so  as  to  avoid  being  crushed.  Once  in  a  drain,  there 
is  little,  if  any,  possibility  of  catching  hounds  again, 
and  the  services  of  a  " wrecker,"  a  specie  of  jolly  but 
dirty-looking  Irishman,  is  required  to  pull  the  horse 
out  of  the  ditch  with  ropes  and  pulleys.  These  men 
station  themselves  at  the  jumps  just  for  this  sort  of 
service.  The  most  amusing  experience  of  my  hunting 
in  Ireland  was  when  my  horse  fell  backward  into  a 
drain  at  the  only  jumpable  spot  in  that  particular 
bank,  thereby  blocking  the  progress  of  the  rest  of  the 
field.  Realizing  that  I  could  go  no  farther  with  the 
animal,  who  lay  sprawling  on  his  back  in  the  lower 
regions  of  a  watery,  dark,  and  deep  ditch,  I  called  to 
my  groom  to  assist  me  in  getting  the  saddle  off. 
Plastered  with  mud,  we  emerged  from  the  ditch  to 
put  the  saddle  on  the  groom's  horse,  who  fortunately 
happened  to  be  on  the  right  side  of  the  drain.  This 
horse  was  able  to  carry  me  on,  and  eventually  I  caught 
up  with  hounds,  much  to  the  disgust  of  the  fuming 
field,  who  were  still  trying  to  devise  ways  of  jumping 
over  my  prostrate  animal  with  a  minimum  amount  of 
danger  to  him  and  to  themselves. 
Timber  is  scarcely  ever  met  with  in  Ireland,  and  is 


156  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

only  used  to  patch  up  gaps  in  the  banks;  but  even 
when  the  rest  of  a  bank  is  unjumpable,  an  Irish  field 
will  not  attempt  a  small  timber  fence.*  Once  or  twice 
I  attempted  a  little  three-foot  fence  with  a  ditch  on 
the  landing  side,  but  it  was  regarded  by  every  one 
as  an  extremely  foolhardy  and  dangerous  thing  to 
do,  and  gave  me,  on  one  unforgetable  occasion,  the 
rather  awe-inspiring  feeling  of  being  alone  for  a  few 
heavenly  moments  with  the  Ward  Union  hounds  in 
full  cry. 

In  Galway,  in  the  west  of  Ireland,  many  huge  stone 
walls  are  met  with,  ranging  as  high  as  five  feet  and 
five  feet  two  inches,  and  the  hunters  in  that  district 
"top"  them,  or  kick  back  at  them  with  their  hind  legs 
instead  of  flying  them  as  we  would — if  we  could. 

In  addition  to  the  fox-hunting  in  England  and 
Ireland  there  are,  of  course,  many  packs  of  harriers; 
and  of  staghounds  which  hunt  the  wild  deer,  in  Devon, 
Bucks,  and  in  the  New  Forest,  as  well  as  those  which 
hunt  the  "carted"  deer,f  such  as  the  Berks  and  Bucks, 
the  Enfield  Chace,  the  Mid-Kent,  the  Norwich,  the 
Surrey  and  others. 

Belonging  to  this  last  class  is  the  famous  Ward 
Union  pack  in  Ireland.  And  as  I  look  back  over  my 
hunting  experiences  I  realize  that  it  was  with  them 
that  I  had  my  best  days.    These  staghounds  give  you 

*  A  fact  to  be  remembered  when  importing  Irish  hunters  with  the 
expectation  that  they  are  going  to  jump  timber. 

t  These  deer  are  kept  in  large  and  beautiful  deer  paddocks,  and  are 
taken  to  the  spot  where  they  are  "enlarged"  from  a  sort  of  van.  A 
certain  amount  of  "law"  or  time  is  allowed  the  stag  before  the  hounds 
are  put  on,  and  when  the  stag  is  eventually  retaken  he  is  sent  back 
to  the  paddocks  in  the  van.  To  all  intents  and  purposes  the  stag  runs 
just  like  a  wild  one,  with  the  possible  exception  of  the  veterans,  who 
are  so  used  to  the  game  that  they  often  allow  themselves  to  be  taken 
much  sooner  than  a  young  one  will. 


HUNTING   ABROAD  157 

the  thrill  of  real  hunting  quite  impossible  to  obtain 
following  a  drag.  Moreover,  none  of  the  glorious  day's 
fun  results  in  the  killing  of  any  of  the  creatures  of  the 
wild. 

Many  well-known  minting  men  agree  that  it  re- 
quires quite  as  much  intelligence  to  hunt  a  deer  as  a 
fox,  and  what  is  more,  as  the  deer  seems  utterly  in- 
different as  to  how  or  which  way  he  runs,  one  is  abso- 
lutely obliged  to  keep  hounds  in  sight,  for,  once  lost, 
no  amount  of  hunting  lore  will  enable  one  to  find  them 
again.  When  hounds  are  running  it  requires  a  very 
phlegmatic  temperament  to  remember  that  the  deer 
is  only  a  " carted"  one. 

The  pace  is  as  fast,  if  not  faster,  than  even  the 
Meadow  Brook  drag,  and  the  jumps  as  big  as  ever 
found  in  the  proverbial  drag  that  was  "laid  with  a 
butterfly  net."  The  stag  will  jump  twenty  feet  with 
the  ease  and  grace  of  a  flying  bird;  will  give  you  a 
twenty-mile  point  and  even  run  into  the  next  county, 
keeping  you  out  from  dawn  to  dark,*  but  the  first 
man  or  woman  in  at  the  " taking"  of  the  stag  has  the 
undeniably  gratifying  job  of  saving  the  beautiful  animal 
from  the  pack. 

It  is  true  that  fox-hunting  is  by  no  means  as  cruel 
a  sport  as  the  rabid  S.  P.  C.  A.  agents  would  have  us 
believe;  that  it  does  not  brutalize  its  votaries — for 
if  it  did  the  British  nation  instead  of  being  one  of  the 
kindest  to  animals  would  be  the  reverse.  It  is  equally 
true  that  the  fox  probably  does  not  possess  the  human 
sensitiveness  with  which  he  is  endowed  in  John  Mase- 
field's  truly  beautiful  poem  " Reynard  the  Fox."     It 

*  Occasionally  when  hunting  these  carted  deer,  the  hounds  will  get 
on  the  scent  of  an  "outlaw"  stag,  or  one  who,  enlarged  a  long  time 
past,  has  never  been  retaken.     In  this  case  a  truly  exciting  day  results. 


158  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

is  also  an  undeniable  fact  that  in  fleeing  from  adver- 
saries the  creatures  of  the  wild  are  only  doing  what 
they  have  been  obliged  to  do  all  their  lives  to  escape 
from  their  natural  enemies  in  the  woods,  and  that 
chasing  the  fox  is  therefore  the  most  natural  method 
of  reducing  his  numbers  (in  some  countries  most  neces- 
sary). 

It  is  far  and  away  less  cruel  than  trapping,  or  than 
any  method  of  killing  by  shooting.*  The  death  that 
is  dealt  by  a  pack  of  hounds,  although  it  may  have 
the  disadvantage  of  being  preceded  by  the  emotion  of 
fear,  is  in  the  end  so  sudden  as  to  be  almost  painless, 
and  is  swift  and  sure,  whereas  when  out  shooting, 
many  little  animals  are  wounded  and  crawl  away  to 
die;  nevertheless,  granting  all  this,  I  personally  dislike 
seeing  a  fox  broken,  and  I  am  sure  that  many  good 
hunting  men  and  women,  could  they  be  brought  to 
confess  it,  would  agree  with  me  that  they  are  glad, 
when  a  fox  has  given  them  a  good  run,  to  see  him  go 
to  earth  or  elude  the  hounds. 

Whether  or  not  the  carted  deer  could  be  hunted  in 
this  country  is  of  course  another  matter.  I  believe 
that  it  was  once  tried  in  Virginia  but  given  up  because 
the  animal  ran  so  long  and  so  far  that  he  disappeared 
altogether,  truly  rather  a  sporting  proposition ! 

In  any  case  it  remains  to  me  the  most  exhilarating 
and  the  pleasantest  of  all  forms  of  hunting,  and  is  in 
truth,  "War  without  its  guilt." 

*  Hunting  a  "bagged  fox"  is  rightly  considered  by  most  real  sports- 
men as  not  giving  the  fox  a  fair  chance,  and  therefore  being  beyond 
the  pale  of  true  sport. 


CHAPTER  XI 
SHOWING  SADDLE  HORSES 

"The  peacock  shows  himself  around, 
The  turkey  struts  upon  the  ground; 
But  apart  from  his  feathers,  the  sporting  bird 
Is  rarely  the  one  that  is  ever  heard." 

John  Van  Ness. 

Public  competition  is  one  of  the  best  means  of  ascer- 
taining the  qualities  of  a  horse.  Accurate  impressions 
can,  owing  to  personal  bias,  scarcely  ever  be  formed 
from  private  judgment,  for  records  of  achievement, 
when  gleaned  from  private  competitions,  are  apt  to 
be  exaggerated  until  the  original  data  has  grown  into 
an  unrecognizable  and  fabulous  tale. 

Racing,  point-to-points,  tournaments,  and  horse 
shows,  etc.,  are  therefore  more  than  merely  a  pleasant 
diversion  for  horse  lovers.  They  are  not  only  of  in- 
finite value  in  educating  public  opinion,  but  are  also 
of  even  greater  importance  in  setting  up  a  high  stand- 
ard for  breeders  and  teaching  those  in  out-of-the-way 
localities  at  what  they  should  aim.  By  maintaining 
a  superlatively  high  standard,  all  such  competitions 
have  helped  to  place  an  increased  money  value  on 
good  make,  shape,  and  manners,  and  thus  make  it 
worth  while  for  breeders  to  raise  first-class  stock. 

If  we  sometimes  feel  discouraged  and  think  that 
horse  shows  are  after  all  a  farce,  that  unsound  and 
poor  specimens  often  win  unjustly,  and  that  shows 
do  not  therefore  benefit  the  breeding  industry  as  much 
as  they  should,  it  is  because  we  forget  that  progress, 
in  any  line,  is  always  slow.    "The  world  moves  along 

159 


160  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

not  only  by  the  gigantic  shoves  of  its  hero  workers, 
but  by  the  aggregating  tiny  pushes  of  every  honest 
worker." 

We  occasionally  find  mismanaged  shows  or  often 
run  across  incompetent  judges,  who  either  give  only 
a  superficial  glance  at  the  horses,  or  who  have  special 
fads,  or,  worse  yet,  those  who  have  in  their  minds  no 
fixed  standards  at  all,  but  distribute  prizes  as  politi- 
cians might  dole  out  favors — to  satisfy  various  inter- 
ests. As  a  general  rule,  however,  the  judges  are  honest 
and  fair  and  thoroughly  competent.  Often  horses  who 
are  supposed  to  have  been  turned  down  unfairly  have 
been  given  the  gate  for  a  bad  fault,  which,  though  in- 
visible to  the  "rail  bird,"  is  glaringly  evident  to  the 
judge,  in  the  centre  of  the  ring,  where  he  can  stand 
directly  behind  or  in  front  of  the  exhibit.  Although 
poor  horses  do  sometimes  win,  in  the  long  run  the 
horse  that  wins  the  most  ribbons  throughout  the  year 
is  generally  pretty  sure  to  be  the  best  at  his  particular 
game.  Often  the  winner  is  merely  the  best  of  his  par- 
ticular type,  and  the  type  selected  is  not  that  which 
many  of  us  would  favor;  but  each  year,  however,  finds 
a  little  improvement,  even  in  type,  and  the  horses  of 
to-day  are  superior  in  this,  as  in  other  countless  ways, 
to  those  exhibited  in  the  long  ago.  Mr.  James  G.  Mar- 
shall has,  for  example,  an  interesting  and  amusing  col- 
lection of  menus,  gotten  out  by  the  Hotel  Waldorf- 
Astoria  during  horse-show  week  and  ranging  through 
many  years  of  the  past.  At  the  top  of  each  menu  is 
a  small  picture  of  one  of  the  previous  year's  winners, 
and  it  is  a  liberal  education  to  study  these  pictures 
and  note  that  many  of  the  champions  of  those  days 
would  scarcely  be  high  class  enough  to  be  placed  even 
in  the  ribbons  nowadays. 


From  a  photograph  by  Haas. 


Sceptro. 

One  of  the  greatest  little  show  mares  in  this  country.     Property  of 
Mrs.  Robert  E.  Tod. 


SHOWING  SADDLE  HORSES  161 

There  is  still  vast  room  for  improvement,  both  in 
the  type  of  horses  selected  for  winners  and  in  the  way 
classes  are  worded  and  shows  are  managed.  As  con- 
ditions are  now,  for  example,  in  many  shows  the 
genuine  hunter  has  no  chance  of  winning  because  the 
requirements  of  classes  are  suited  only  to  "ring" 
jumpers,  and  the  jumps  constructed  are  such  as  were 
never  seen  in  a  natural  hunting  country.  This  is,  of 
course,  an  evil  that  will,  undoubtedly,  always  be  bound 
to  exist  to  a  certain  extent,  because,  at  best,  hunting 
and  showing  hunters  are  two  very  different  games. 
The  best  ring  jumper  is  often  too  hot  to  hunt,  and 
the  best  and  safest  hunter  in  the  world  is  often  too  in- 
telligent to  trouble  about  jumping  in  a  ring.  Never- 
theless, this  difficulty  is  being  overcome  in  various 
ways.  The  trick  jumper  can  retain  his  classes,  only 
other  classes  should  be  added  more  adapted  to  the 
hunter,  and  the  requirements  of  entry  should  be  strictly 
enforced,  so  that  none  but  the  real  hunter  can  compete. 
For  example,  in  such  classes,  "ticking"  a  jump  should 
be  secondary  to  the  form  of  jumping  (an  innovation 
already  adopted  in  some  shows),  and  when  the  con- 
formation is  judged,  more  attention  should  be  given 
to  the  horse's  ability  to  do  the  work  required  of  him 
and  less  to  his  being  so  "hog  fat"  that  he  couldn't 
hunt  if  he  tried.  All  such  improvements,  however, 
would  be  attempted  at  once  if  the  show  managements 
felt  that  the  hunting  men  and  women  were  behind 
them  and  would  lend  a  helping  hand  instead  of  sneer- 
ing at  shows  in  general  and  in  particular  at  show 
jumpers.  After  all,  even  though  the  "trick"  jumper 
may  be,  because  of  temperament,  or,  as  is  often  the 
case,  merely  from  lack  of  experience,  unable  to  cross  a 
natural  country  well,  he  can  nevertheless  jump  fences 


162  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

that  are  far  above  the  capabilities  of  the  ordinary 
hunter.  It  requires  a  much  more  perfect  and  careful 
fencer  to  win  in  the  show  ring,  where  every  "tick" 
counts,  than  in  the  hunting  field,  where,  so  long  as  the 
horse  gets  over  the  fence,  it  doesn't  really  matter  how. 
How  many  men  and  women  in  the  average  hunting 
field  ever  jump  anything  over  four  feet?  They  may 
think  they  do,  but  when  they  come  to  measure  it  under 
the  tape,  the  fence  that  has  stopped  the  entire  field — 
but  which  some  bruiser  has  proudly  boasted  of  jump- 
ing— is  found  to  be  barely  four  feet  six  inches !  And 
yet,  when  they  see  a  horse  in  the  show  ring  make  an 
absolutely  clean  performance  over  eight  post  and  rail 
jumps  of  four  feet  six  inches  or  five  feet,  in  many  cases 
quite  as  stiff  as  the  jumps  one  encounters  across 
country,  they  call  it  " trick"  jumping,  and  of  no  ac- 
count !  I  have  indeed  often  found  that  much  of  the 
laughing  at  show  jumpers  is  a  case  of  sour  grapes  on 
the  part  of  the  hunting  man,  for  one  notices  that  very 
often  when  he  really  gets  a  horse  good  enough  to  win 
in  the  ring,  he  too  enters  the  arena  and  stays  in  it  as 
long  as  he  can  pull  off  the  ribbons.  Far  be  it  from  me 
not  to  admit  that  the  hunter  has  difficulties  of  take 
off  and  landing  which  the  show  horse  never  encounters, 
and  that  he  therefore  requires  more  intelligence  and 
a  kindlier  disposition;  I  merely  want  to  emphasize 
the  absurdity  of  sneering  at  those  horses  who,  because 
of  their  perfect  training  and  consequent  great  value, 
are  rarely  risked  in  the  hunting  field  and  are  kept  en- 
tirely for  the  show  ring.  "It  is  just  the  same  as  prize 
fruit,  which  is  too  good  to  be  eaten.  It  is  mainly  dis- 
played as  an  exhibit  of  what  can  be  done  in  fruit-grow- 
ing for  the  benefit  of  those  who  grow  fruit  for  the 
market." 


SHOWING  SADDLE   HORSES  163 

If  only  more  hunting  men  and  women  would  join 
the  game  solely  for  the  pleasure  of  competition,  much 
of  the  present  "wire  pulling"  and  taint  of  profes- 
sionalism would  disappear  from  the  show  ring  and 
horse  showing  would  become  more  of  a  " sport"  in- 
stead of  merely  a  means  of  advertisement,  shared  by 
social  climbers  and  horse  dealers. 

Nor  do  I  mean,  when  I  speak  of  eliminating  "pro- 
fessionalism" from  the  show  ring,  that  amateurs  are 
in  general  any  more  sportsmanlike  than  professionals. 
On  the  contrary,  I  have  found  in  my  experience  that 
many  of  the  latter  are  far  more  graceful  winners,  and 
gamer  losers,  than  the  former.  "Dick"  Donnelly  was, 
for  example,  one  of  those  professionals  against  whom 
it  was  a  pleasure  to  ride.  He  was  as  enthusiastic  over 
the  good  performance  of  a  competitor  as  over  his  own. 
He  was  a  modest  winner,  a  cheerful  loser,  and  always 
ready  to  lend  a  helping  hand  to  any  one  who  needed 
it.  He  was  one  of  the  most  skilled  riders  this  country 
has  ever  seen,  a  "sportsman"  and  a  "gentleman"  in 
the  truest  sense  of  the  word,  and  one  whom  any  ama- 
teur might  do  well  to  imitate. 

Now,  as  we  have  already  stated,  "showing"  is  a 
game  unto  itself,  and  it  requires  almost  as  much  time 
and  care  and  preparation  as  racing.  Many  beginners, 
passably  good  riders  themselves,  who  have  perhaps 
even  ridden  from  childhood,  think  it  is  quite  easy  to 
go  into  a  ring  and  win.  In  the  case  of  a  saddle  horse, 
they  hack  the  animal  about  any  old  way  until  a  day 
or  so  before  the  show  and  enter  him  haphazard.  They 
either  ride  him  themselves,  and  find  to  their  astonish- 
ment, that  having  ridden  all  their  lives  doesn't  help 
much  at  this  game,  or  they  select  some  amateur  or 
professional  at  the  eleventh  hour,  and  expect  the  horse 
to  do  his  best  under  such  adverse  circumstances. 


164  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

It  is  to  prevent  these  raw  recruits  in  the  show  ring 
from  making  all  sorts  of  faux  pas  that  the  following 
chapter  is  intended.  Veterans  at  the  game  will  find 
but  little  or  nothing  in  the  way  of  advice  that  they 
do  not  already  know. 

The  show  saddle  horse  should  be  a  superlatively 
fine  example  of  the  saddle  horse  described  in  Chapter 
III,  with  as  perfect  manners  and  gaits  as  it  is  possible 
to  obtain.  Whereas  a  slight  deficiency  in  training 
such  as  a  reluctance  to  change  leads,  to  back,  to  stand 
quietly,  or  refrain  from  jiggling  at  a  walk  might  pos- 
sibly be  overlooked  iu  an  animal  destined  merely  for 
pleasure  riding,  in  the  show  animal  every  failing  and 
fault  will  count  materially  against  him. 

Generally  speakng,  the  more  " quality"  or  breeding 
a  horse  possesses,  the  more  chance  he  will  have  of  win- 
ning. In  England,  nothing  but  a  thoroughbred  would 
have  much  chance,  but  here  many  Kentucky  horses  and 
trotting-bred  varieties  are  found  among  the  winners. 
Granted  that  a  good  horse  of  any  breed  or  cross  what- 
ever is  better  than  a  poor  thoroughbred,  the  reason 
that  so  few  good  thoroughbred  saddlers  ever  appear 
in  the  show  ring  here  is  because  the  judges  selected 
are  those  who  prefer  the  high  action  and  peacocky 
carriage  of  the  Kentucky  horse  to  the  smoother  gaits 
of  the  thoroughbred.  After  Mr.  F.  Vivian  Gooch  came 
to  America,  just  prior  to  the  war,  the  situation  changed 
in  favor  of  the  thoroughbred,  but  during  the  war  few 
English  judges  came  here,  and  few  well-broken  thor- 
oughbreds were  exhibited,  so  the  old  state  of  affairs 
gradually  came  back  again,  until  to-day,  many  owners 
of  handsome  thoroughbreds  find  it  useless  to  exhibit 
their  animals.  A  prominent  exhibitor  said  to  me  not 
long  ago:  "Yes  I  agree  with  you,  I  prefer  to  ride  a  thor- 
oughbred, but  what's  the  use?    If  you  want  to  win 


SHOWING  SADDLE  HORSES  165 

in  the  show  ring  you  simply  have  to  get  a  Kentucky 
horse."  However,  not  all  of  us  are  so  weak-minded 
as  that,  and  we  prefer  to  get  the  gate  with  our  thorough- 
breds, knowing  that  if  we  stick  it  out  they  will  come 
into  their  own  again  and  give  cards  and  spades  to  the 
Kentucky  horse  under  any  judge  who  is  a  real  horse- 
man. 

When  you  have  decided  upon  the  type  of  horse  you 
intend  to  show  and  are  determined  that  he  is  good 
enough  to  win,  the  next  thing  to  do,  if  you  are  a  be- 
ginner at  the  game,  is  to  try  to  get  the  advice  of  some 
experienced  horseman.  Either  put  your  horse  in  the 
hands  of  some  one  who  knows  all  about  it,  or  if  you 
wish  to  undertake  the  matter  yourself,  study  your 
adviser's  methods  and  place  yourself  under  his  tuition. 

Never  allow  a  horse  who  is  a  "novice"  to  be  brought 
out  under  inauspicious  circumstances,  for  a  bad  be- 
ginning is  hard  to  eradicate  from  the  minds  of  judges. 
Past  performances  are  not  supposed  to  count,  but 
judges  are  only  human  and  a  horse  with  a  good  repu- 
tation has  just  that  much  in  his  favor.  Reputations 
among  horses,  as  among  persons,  are  very  easy  to  lose 
and  hard  to  get  back. 

When  the  prize  list  arrives,  make  a  point  of  study- 
ing the  names  of  the  judges,  which  are  usually  printed 
on  the  first  page.  Find  out  if  possible  their  preference, 
and  then  if  you  find  that  you  intend  showing  a  type 
of  horse  that  they  particularly  dislike — show  elsewhere. 
For  example,  it  would  be  simply  a  waste  of  time  and 
a  detriment  to  your  horse's  good  name  and  character 
to  show  a  Kentucky  horse  under  a  "Mr.  Gooch,"  and 
similarily  foolish  to  exhibit  a  thoroughbred  before  a 
"Major  Benton."  Some  people  advocate  omitting 
the  name  of  the  judges  on  the  prize  list,  claiming  that 


166  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

it  is  more  "sporting"  to  exhibit  without  knowing  who 
the  judge  is.  This  might  be  fair  in  England,  where 
there  are  no  two  contending  types  of  saddle  horses, 
or  here,  if  it  were  possible  to  establish  a  recognized 
"type,"  but  otherwise  it  is  grossly  unfair  to  compel 
the  exhibitor  to  go  to  the  trouble  and  expense  of  ship- 
ping an  animal  to  a  distant  show,  only  to  find  that  he 
might  just  as  well  have  stayed  at  home,  since  the  judge 
in  question  can't  abide  this  particular  type  of  horse. 
There  is  perhaps  another  adjacent  show  going  on  at 
the  same  time,  to  which  he  could  just  as  well  have 
shipped  and  where  he  would  have  been  able  to  win 
under  a  judge  who  knew,  appreciated,  and  gave  a  fair 
chance  to  the  type  which  his  entries  represented.  For 
this  reason,  I  think  that  unless  absolutely  unavoid- 
able, horse-show  managements  have  no  right  to  change 
the  judges  after  the  prize  list  has  been  published,  and 
gentlemen,  who  have  been  asked  to  act  as  judges, 
should  be  too  gentlemanly  to  consent  to  act,  knowing 
all  the  time  that  they  do  not  intend  to  be  present. 

The  next  thing  to  do  in  studying  the  prize  list,  is  to 
select  and  enter  only  in  those  classes  for  which  the 
horse  is  suited.  Careful  and  judicious  "placing,"  both 
as  to  the  judges  before  whom  the  horse  is  to  appear 
and  the  classes  in  which  he  will  be  exhibited,  is  the 
secret  of  many  successes.  I  have  so  often  seen  owners 
bitterly  disappointed  at  their  failure  to  win  a  ribbon, 
when  the  sole  reason  was  because  the  horse  was  placed 
in  the  wrong  class,  either  a  road  hack  appearing  in  a 
park  hack  class  or  an  animal  who  was  really  a  splendid 
lightweight  specimen,  attempting  to  win  a  ribbon  in 
a  middleweight  class.  This  sort  of  wrong  placing  is  for- 
tunately being  eliminated  in  the  hunter  classes  at  Madi- 
son Square  Garden  and  elsewhere,  and  if  a  horse  is 


SHOWING  SADDLE  HORSES  167 

found  to  be  entered  in  the  wrong  weight  division,  he 
is  placed  in  the  proper  classes  by  the  judges.  This, 
however,  cannot  be  done  in  saddle  classes,  and  if  the 
horse  is  not  up  to  the  weight  required,  as,  for  example, 
in  the  200-pound  class,  he  simply  gets  the  gate  with- 
out explanation. 

If  you  intend  showing  a  new  star  for  whom  you  have 
great  hopes,  be  careful  not  to  make  the  mistake  of 
bringing  him  out  first  at  some  small  local  show,  where 
he  will  compete  in  mediocre  company  and  is  bound  to 
win.  For  if  this  show,  no  matter  how  small  it  may 
be,  is  a  "recognized"  show,*  your  star's  first  blue  rib- 
bon will  render  him  ineligible  to  compete  in  some  really 
worth-while  novice  class  at  a  big  show.  Possibly  this 
very  class  might  have  been  the  only  one  in  which  he 
had  a  chance  to  win,  owing  to  the  fact  that  he  is  still 
too  young  or  green  to  compete  successfully  in  an  open 
class  among  veterans. 

The  following  aids  in  placing  horses  and  the  re- 
quirements of  different  classes  may  be  of  assistance 
to  the  beginner: 

Much  has  been  written  about  the  difference  between 
a  park  hack  and  a  road  hack,  but  the  difference  is  so 
subtle  that  it  is  almost  as  hard  to  define  as  that  elusive 
word  "charm"  on  which  debating  societies  write  es- 
says. Both  park  and  road  hacks  must  be  well  formed, 
have  good  flat-footed  walks,  square  trots,  and  easy 
canters,  but  the  park  hack  must  be  more  brilliant  and 
flashy.  This  generally  means  that  he  carries  a  higher 
head  and  dock,  and  has  more  knee  action  at  the  trot. 

*A  recognized  show  is  one  which  is  "acknowledged"  by  the  Asso- 
ciation of  American  Horse  Shows,  and  managed  under  its  rules.  Since 
the  establishment  of  this  association  many  small  local  and  club  shows, 
at  which  a  horse  formerly  could  win  a  blue  and  still  be  accounted  a 
novice,  are  now  recognized  shows,  and  should  be  shown  at  with  caution. 


168  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

Although,  to  my  way  of  thinking,  the  easy  canter 
should  be  the  paramount  gait  when  travelling  on  the 
road  or  in  the  country,  and  the  trot  should  be  more 
or  less  reserved  for  the  park,  the  judges  seem  to  think 
differently,  and  in  most  road  classes  in  this  country 
the  canter  is  altogether  neglected  and  a  horse  who 
trots  a  2.20  gait,  wins  the  road  hack  class.  It  is  in- 
deed sometimes  rather  hard  to  tell  exactly  what  the 
judges  do  consider  a  park  hack  or  a  road  hack.  I 
remember  once  showing  a  snappy  little  thorough- 
bred called  "Northman"  at  Brooklyn,  where  he  got 
the  gate  in  every  class  but  the  road  class,  in  which 
he  apparently  was  highly  thought  of  on  account  of 
his  superb  canter.  The  following  autumn,  intending 
to  show  at  Mineola,  I  was  tempted  to  enter  him  in 
nothing  but  the  road  class,  but,  fortunately,  thought 
better  of  it  and  took  a  chance  at  the  other  classes. 
This  proved  to  be  a  most  happy  decision,  for  he  won 
every  class  straight  through,  including  the  champion- 
ship, with  the  sole  exception  of  the  road  hack  class  in 
which  the  horses  were  not  even  asked  to  canter  once. 
The  judge,  a  personal  friend  of  mine,  came  up  to  me 
during  the  class  and  said,  sotto  voce:  "  Too  bad.  This 
time  he's  in  the  wrong  class,  you  see  he  can't  trot  fast 
enough." 

In  England,  where  the  people  really  use  the  horses 
they  show,  and  where  the  canter  is  the  favored  gait, 
there  is  no  marked  distinction  between  the  park  and 
the  road  hack ;  in  fact,  there  is  no  such  thing  as  a  park 
hack,  and  the  classes  are  divided  simply  into  "riding 
horses,"  which  include  weight-carrying  horses  and 
cobs,  and  "saddle  horses"  or  simply  "hacks"  em- 
bracing all  others.  The  "covert"  hack  bears  no  re- 
semblance to  our  "road"  hack.     He  is  simply  sup- 


SHOWING  SADDLE  HORSES  169 

posed  to  be  a  good-looking  horse  of  saddle  type,  a  sur- 
vival of  the  horse  used  in  the  days  before  the  motor, 
to  carry  one  swiftly,  easily,  and  gently  to  the  meet, 
at  a  delightful  ten-mile-an-hour  canter — the  sole  gait 
at  which  he  ever  travelled.  He  was,  moreover,  sup- 
posed to  be  able  to  jump  anything  up  to  about  three 
feet  six  inches  in  height,  so  that,  at  a  pinch,  one  could 
take  short  cuts  to  the  meet.  However,  I  presume  it  is 
quite  natural  that  over  here  neither  road  nor  park 
hacks  are  supposed  to  canter  much,  since  our  roads 
are  hard  and  our  park  bridle  paths  harder  still.  Al- 
though, if  I  had  my  choice,  I  would  reverse  the  order 
of  things,  and  insist  that  the  park,  and  not  the  road 
hack  had  the  fast  trot,  I  can  quite  readily  understand 
that  until  our  roads  are  improved  little  attention  will 
be  paid  to  the  canter. 

In  classes  for  the  best-trained  saddle  horse  ability 
to  change  leads  quickly  and  neatly,  to  stand  absolutely 
still  when  being  mounted,  etc.,  is  necessary.  Any 
little  high  school  trick  such  as  ability  to  " passage" 
or  "traverse"  will,  of  course,  count  in  the  horse's  favor. 

In  appointment  classes  care  must  be  taken  that 
both  horse  and  rider  are  turned  out  correctly  to  the 
most  minor  detail — tabulated  lists  of  which  are  given 
under  the  chapter  on  dress. 

The  preparation  of  a  show  horse  should  always 
begin  long  before  the  entries  close,  as  in  most  cases 
that  date  is  set  only  a  week  or  two  prior  to  the  event. 

In  getting  a  saddle  horse  ready,  assuming  that  he 
is  broken  at  least  in  a  rudimentary  sense,  he  should 
be  given  only  a  short  daily  work-out,  but  a  "snappy" 
one.  Hunters  may  be  given  long  slow  work,  but  in 
saddle-horse  "preping"  the  animal  should  only  be 
trotted  so  long  as  he  is  brilliant  at  that  gait,  and  never 


170  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

be  allowed  to  tire  or  "let  down."  For  the  average 
show  horse  about  one  half-hour  daily  is  sufficient  to 
keep  him  fit  and  enable  him  to  put  on  flesh.  The  mis- 
take must  not  be  made,  however,  of  giving  the  horse 
so  little  work  that  he  is  too  fresh  to  strike  a  flat-footed 
walk  or  trot  in  the  ring,  but  jiggles  and  prances  all 
the  time.  To  prevent  this  he  must  have  his  slow  work- 
out even  the  day  of  the  show,  and  preferably  early  in 
the  morning. 

When  a  horse  is  being  trained  for  a  show  he  should 
be  taught  to  stand  quietly  while  being  mounted,  pref- 
erably with  no  one  at  his  head.  Stablemen  have  an 
abominable  habit  of  everlastingly  holding  a  horse's 
head  when  you  are  arranging  the  reins.  Although,  as 
a  general  practice,  it  is  not  wise  to  mount  or  to  arrange 
one's  skirt,  etc.,  with  the  reins  lying  on  the  horse's 
neck,  nevertheless  it  is  a  good  thing  to  accustom  a 
show  horse  to  this.  Once  ready  to  start,  pick  your 
reins  up  very  gently  and  arrange  them,  not  letting  the 
horse  move  until  you  touch  him  with  your  heel  or 
otherwise  give  him  the  signal  to  go  on.  If  he  does  move 
before  you  wish  him  to  do  so,  speak  to  him  sharply 
and  rein  him  back,  but  never  jerk  him.  Attention 
to  these  details  counts  in  favor  of  a  horse's  manners 
in  the  ring. 

When  walking  your  show  prospect,  always  start 
him  off  on  a  flat-footed  walk,  and  if  he  attempts  to 
jiggle,  quiet  him  by  putting  your  hand  on  his  crest 
and  speaking  soothingly  to  him.  Often  a  horse  who 
will  not  walk  quietly  at  first  can  be  taught  to  do  so 
later  in  the  day,  when  he  is  not  so  fresh,  but  great  pa- 
tience is  required  to  get  results,  and  it  is  seldom  wise 
to  teach  a  refractory  horse  to  walk  on  the  homeward 
journey,  as  he  will  then  be  sure  to  be  impatient. 


SHOWING  SADDLE  HORSES  171 

In  trotting,  never  go  beyond  a  collected  pace,  and 
only  trot  your  mount  for  those  few  moments  at  a  time 
during  which  he  can  keep  his  trot  at  its  top-most  pitch 
of  brilliance.  Always  stop  him  and  return  to  a  walk 
before  his  trot  is  flagging  in  snap.* 

Insist  that  he  always  break  to  a  canter  from  a  walk 
or  a  standstill  and  never  from  a  trot,  and  see  that  he 
leads  on  the  leg  desired.  As  horses  usually  go  around 
the  show  ring  to  the  right,  prompt  breaking  on  the 
off  fore  leg  is  absolutely  essential. 

Backing  nicely  must  also  be  included  in  his  accom- 
plishments. Whenever  possible,  accustom  the  show 
prospect  to  all  sorts  of  sounds  and  sights;  to  motors, 
music,  clapping  of  hands,  waving  of  flags  and  crowds 
of  people.  One  prominent  exhibitor  hires  the  village 
people  to  come  and  make  a  fearful  racket,  outside  the 
training  ring  of  his  stables,  while  the  horses  are  at 
work. 

One  thing  is  quite  certain,  namely,  the  novice  must 
make  up  his  mind  at  the  start  that  a  show  horse  can- 
not be  hacked  about  by  the  average,  indifferent  rider, 
if  he  is  to  be  kept  in  show  form.  To  win  he  must  be 
"hog  fat"  and  just  enough  above  himself  to  be  bril- 
liant. 

On  the  other  hand,  although  careless  riding  will 
ruin  a  champion  in  an  astonishingly  short  time,  I  do 
not  believe  that  judicious  hacking,  between  shows  and 
in  the  off  season,  by  a  careful  rider,  will  hurt  any  show 
horse,  f  I  myself  have  ridden  "Fairyhill,"  the  Cham- 

*  If  a  horse  will  not  trot  he  can  sometimes  be  induced  to  do  so  by 
laying  one's  hand  on  his  crest,  or  even  grasping  one  ear  for  a  moment. 
Of  course  the  latter  can  never  be  done  in  the  show  ring. 

f  A  suitable  place  for  hacking  the  show  animal  must,  of  course,  be 
selected.  Central  Park,  for  example,  is  no  fit  place,  as  it  is  too  hard 
for  cantering,  or  even  trotting. 


172  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

pion  of  Olympia,  and  "Turquoise,"  the  unbeaten 
Champion  of  England,  France,  Belgium,  and  Holland, 
on  long  rides  through  Windsor  forest,  and  their  trainer, 
Mr.  Vivian  Gooch,  that  past  master  of  the  art,  would 
think  one  had  gone  clean  crazy  to  wrap  a  show  horse 
up  in  pink  cotton  wool,  figuratively  speaking,  as  one 
does  here  in  America,  and  never  allow  even  the  owner 
to  see  the  animal  except  in  hoods  and  blankets.  Per- 
haps, however,  in  all  justice  to  our  American  system, 
one  is  bound  to  admit  that  it  is  easier  for  English  people 
to  hack  their  show  animals  than  it  is  for  us;  for  over 
there,  as  already  stated,  the  judges  set  more  store  by 
a  good  canter  than  by  a  good  trot,  and  the  canter 
naturally  suffers  far  less  from  promiscuous  hacking 
about  than  does  the  trot. 

In  hacking  a  show  animal,  the  rider  must  in  any 
case  always  remember  during  every  moment  that  his 
horse  is  a  show  horse,  and  that  he  must  always  be  rid- 
den just  as  carefully  and  exactly  as  if  he  were  in  the 
ring.  He  must  never  for  a  moment  be  allowed  to  loaf, 
to  break  into  a  canter  without  the  signal,  or  canter 
on  the  wrong  leg.  In  this  way  only  can  a  show  horse 
be  hacked  about  and  still  retain  his  brilliance.  If  you 
are  not  painstaking  enough  to  do  this,  if  you  are  not 
a  good-enough  rider  to  show  him  yourself,  I  would 
not  advise  your  hacking  him,  for  the  man  or  woman 
who  is  to  show  him  for  you,  will  go  through  the  heart- 
breaking job  of  seeing  him  lose  all  that  he  has  learned. 
For  the  same  reason  lending  show  horses  to  a  friend 
is  a  perilous  business. 

It  is  best  to  avoid  clipping  the  horse  just  prior  to 
a  show,  unless  the  coat  looks  rough  or  unkempt,  or 
the  horse  sweats  enough  to  make  him  lose  weight. 
If  he  must  be  clipped,  do  it  only  a  day  or  two  before 


SHOWING  SADDLE  HORSES  173 

the  show,  as  he  looks  better  then  than  when  the  coat 
is  half  grown  out.  The  saddle  mark  should  always 
be  left  undipped  to  protect  the  back,  but  it  is  totally 
incorrect  and  out  of  place  to  clip  a  saddle  horse  hunter 
style,  i.  e.}  with  the  legs  left  unclipped.  Whether 
clipped  or  unclipped,  the  fetlocks,  ears,  and  nostrils 
should  be  trimmed  before  the  show. 

The  mane  and  tail  of  a  well  turned  out  hack  should 
be  neatly  trimmed,  and  if  we  follow  the  broad  lines 
laid  down  by  nature,  the  result  will  be  neither  inar- 
tistic nor  artificial,  but  will  bear  the  same  comparison 
to  the  flowing  mane  of  the  wild  horse  as  the  elegant 
coiffure  of  the  lady  does  to  the  unkempt  locks  of  the 
peasant  girl. 

If  a  horse  is  a  thoroughbred,  or  a  well  bred  animal, 
his  mane,  which  previously  should  have  been  shortened 
to  a  few  inches  in  length,  must  be  neatly  braided  up 
like  a  race-horse  (see  illustration  facing  page  32)  and 
should  lie  flat  against  his  neck  rather  than  in  nasty  little 
upright  knobs.  Black  shoe  thread  should  always  be 
used  for  the  braiding,  as  colored  wool  savors  too  much 
of  the  dealer's  yard  and  looks  cheap  and  vulgar. 

A  neatly  pulled,  properly  braided  mane  presents 
a  far  smarter  and  prettier  appearance  than  the  straight 
line  produced  by  " hogging."  If,  however,  the  animal 
is  underbred  or  has  a  short  thick  neck,  he  will  prob- 
ably look  better  hogged,  as  this  tends  to  make  the 
neck  longer  and  finer  and  appears  to  give  the  animal 
"another  cross  of  blood."  When  a  horse  is  thus 
trimmed,  the  clippers  should  be  very  carefully  run  over 
the  mane,  just  prior  to  the  show,  so  as  to  make  it 
smooth  and  neat.  Roached  manes,  or  those  in  which  a 
fine  fine  is  left  standing  upright,  called  "herringboned, " 
are  in  no  case  correct,  while  a  long,  flowing  mane,  like 
the  full,  flowing  tail,  looks  unkempt  and  untidy. 


174  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

The  tail  should  be  carefully  pulled  at  the  dock,* 
so  as  to  remove  all  the  unnecessary  short  feathery 
hairs  underneath.  Only  those,  however,  on  the  under 
side  of  the  dock  should  be  pulled  and  those  on  top 
should  never  be  touched,  but  forced  to  lie  flat  by 
bandaging.  The  prettiest  tail  for  a  hack  is  that  which 
is  pulled  at  the  butt,  grows  full  toward  the  bottom, 
and  then  is  absolutely  evenly  squared  off  just  a  little 
above  the  hocks.  Next  best  to  this  is  the  tail  that  is 
switched. 

Under  no  circumstances  should  a  horse  ever  be 
docked.  Fortunately  fashion  never  decreed  that  the 
thoroughbred  should  be  docked,  and  now,  thank  good- 
ness, the  disgusting  practice  of  docking  poor  half-bred 
horses  has  also  gone  out  of  fashion.  Originally  it  was 
merely  a  dealer's  trick,  to  make  the  anhnaPs  quarters 
look  broader,  and  owners  were  inveigled  into  believing 
that  it  looked  "smart."  But  to  any  real  horseman  or 
humane  lover  of  animals  it  could  never  be  anything  but 
a  disgusting,  senseless,  and  cruel  practice.  The  actual 
pain  caused  by  the  operation  is  nothing  compared 
to  the  misery,  to  which  a  tailless  horse  is  subjected  in 
the  summertime,  particularly  if  turned  out  to  grass. 
Docked  horses  are  unable  to  defend  themselves  against 
the  swarms  of  flies  which  attack  them,  and  in  order 
to  rid  themselves  of  the  pests  they  are  obliged  to  stamp 
incessantly  until  the  concussion  is  likely  to  injure  their 
feet.  Watch  a  long-tailed  and  a  short-tailed  animal 
grazing,  and  you  will  observe,  that  the  former  seldom 
makes  a  move  with  his  feet,  while  the  latter  is  con- 
stantly stamping  and  throwing  his  head  back  to  his 


*  All  hairs  should  be  removed  by  pulling.  This  is  not  painful  un- 
less too  much  is  attempted  at  once.  Scissors  should  never  be  touched 
to  a  tail,  nor  should  the  groom  be  permitted  to  use  a  comb  on  it,  as 
this  thins  it  lamentably. 


SHOWING  SADDLE   HORSES  175 

flanks  to  rid  himself  of  the  insects.  Moreover,  besides 
its  office  as  fly-swisher,  the  tail  also  protects  the  horse 
from  the  rain.*  In  a  storm  horses  turn  their  backs 
to  the  rain,  knowing  that  the  drops  will  drip  harmlessly 
off  the  tail. 

From  an  artistic  standpoint,  docking  horses  is 
nothing  short  of  a  disfigurement,  since  all  symmetry 
is  thereby  destroyed.  Aside  from  its  utilitarian  pur- 
pose as  "rear  steering  gear"  and  "fly-swisher,"  the 
tail  at  one  end  of  the  body  counterbalances  the  head 
and  neck  at  the  other.  The  ridiculous  stump  of  a 
docked  horse  resembles  nothing  so  much  as  a  "tea- 
pot with  the  spout  intact  and  the  handle  broken  off." 

The  horse  should  generally  be  shod  three  or  four 
days  before  the  show.  If  he  is  to  wear  heavy  shoes 
to  increase  his  action,  these  should  be  put  on  as  late 
as  possible,  otherwise  their  effect  will  wear  off.  They 
should  likewise  be  removed  immediately  after  the 
show  to  save  the  horse's  feet  and  ease  the  strain  that 
heavy  shoes  cause  on  the  tendons.  The  exact  shape 
or  weight  of  show  shoes  for  any  given  horse  must  of 
course  be  determined  in  each  individual  case,  and  an 
expert  blacksmith  employed.  Some  blacksmiths  make 
a  specialty  of  shoeing  show  horses,  and  can,  after  ob- 
serving the  animal  move,  forge  a  shoe  best  adapted 
to  him. 

Great  care  must  be  taken  that  the  horse  is  not 
"pricked"  in  shoeing,  which  might  cause  sufficient 
lameness  on  the  day  of  the  show  to  ruin  the  animal's 
chances.  For  this  reason,  not  only  should  a  competent 
stud-groom  always  accompany  the  horse  to  the  shop, 

*  The  same  thing  applies  to  the  mane,  which  was  intended  by  nature 
to  prevent  the  rain  soaking  into  the  roots  of  the  hair  and  to  protect 
the  animal's  vertebra  from  the  hot  rays  of  the  sun. 


176  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

but  also  it  is  generally  unwise  to  allow  the  horse's  feet 
to  be  touched  prior  to  a  show  by  a  strange  blacksmith 
or  by  the  smith  on  the  show  grounds,  unless  it  is  ab- 
solutely necessary. 

The  proper  kind  of  bridle  and  saddle  to  use  on  the 
show  hack  will  be  discussed  in  detail  in  Chapter  XV. 
Suffice  it  here  to  say,  that  a  double  bridle  should  be 
used,  with  sewn-in  reins  and  headstall,  plain,  stitched 
nose-band,*  and  the  front  or  brow-band,  and  should  be 
of  colored  braided  ribbon.  The  saddle  must  be  of  some 
good  make,  preferably  with  a  narrow  "off"  flap  and 
with  a  pigskin  seat.  It  should  be  leather-lined  and 
fitted  with  leather  girths.  No  martingales  are  per- 
mitted in  the  ring.  The  horse  should  be  exercised  in 
the  bridle  that  he  is  to  wear  and  become  accustomed 
to  going  without  a  martingale. 

Over  long  distances  horses  may  be  shipped  to  a  show 
by  express-train  or  boat,  providing  that  the  service 
is  good  and  that  the  animals  do  not  have  to  change 
cars  or  require  to  be  shunted  to  and  fro  at  railway 
terminals.  Care  should  be  taken  in  loading  that  one's 
horses  are  not  placed  near  other  strange  animals  from 
whom  they  may  catch  disease.  It  is  also  of  great  im- 
portance that  the  horses  be  suitably  blanketed,  so 
that  they  do  not  " break  out"  and  then  become  chilled 
when  emerging  into  the  air  again.  Under  no  circum- 
stances should  horses  be  sent,  even  for  a  short  dis- 
tance, without  an  attendant,  and  as  an  added  precau- 
tion they  should  also  be  tagged. 

Shipping  horses  by  van,  although  more  expensive, 


*  At  one  time  there  was  a  ridiculous  fashion  prevalent  in  which  the 
nose-band  was  left  off  altogether.  The  most  recent  fad  is  to  use  a 
white  buckskin  nose-band,  which,  however,  gives  a  "spotty"  effect, 
and  detracts  rather  than  adds  to  the  horse's  appearance. 


SHOWING  SADDLE   HORSES  177 

is  the  best  way  if  the  distance  is  less  than  150  miles; 
beyond  that  distance  I  think  train  travel,  if  the  service 
is  good,  is  perhaps  less  tiring  than  an  endless  motor 
journey  over  bumpy  roads. 

Under  most  circumstances  it  is  advisable  for  horses 
to  arrive  at  the  show  grounds  a  day,  or  even  more, 
before  they  are  to  exhibit,  depending,  of  course,  on 
the  length  of  their  journey. 

Sending  saddle  horses  to  a  show  over  the  road  is 
not  advisable;  they  are  seldom  in  fit  and  hard  con- 
dition, as  might  be  the  case  with  jumpers  or  hunters, 
are  often  laden  down  with  heavy  shoes,  and  any  slight 
loss  of  flesh  is  bound  to  count  against  them. 

On  arriving,  the  horses  should  be  at  once  attended 
to,  and,  if  chilled,  given  a  drench  of  whiskey  and  quinine 
and  a  hot  mash  that  night.  Some  horses  go  off  their 
feed  if  obliged  to  drink  hard  water  to  which  they  are 
not  accustomed,  in  which  case  the  water  should  be 
softened  with  a  few  handfuls  of  bran. 

The  stabling  accommodations  at  a  show  should,  in 
the  case  of  large  shows,  be  reserved  long  before  the 
entries  close,  for  the  best  ones  are  quickly  snatched 
up.  It  is  not  fair  to  expect  adiorse  accustomed  to  a 
box  stall  to  do  his  best,  if  he  is  required  during  the 
week  of  the  show,  to  adapt  himself  to  a  straight  stall. 
Whenever  possible,  it  is  wise  to  engage  stalls  in  some 
near-by  private  stable  in  preference  to  stabling  one's 
horses  on  the  show  grounds,  where  there  is  less  quiet 
and  where  they  are  more  apt  to  contract  diseases. 

One  extra  box  stall  should  be  reserved  when  pos- 
sible in  which  to  keep  one's  tack,  and  in  which  box  the 
groom  should  be  persuaded  to  sleep  to  insure  the  safety 
of  the  horses.  Failing  this,  padlocks  are  a  good  sub- 
stitute.   The  race-track  is  not  the  only  home  of  crooks. 


178  HACKS  AND   HUNTERS 

As  a  horse  always  goes  better  if  the  saddle  has  been 
on  his  back  for  a  little  while,  he  should  not  be  saddled 
up  at  the  last  minute,  but  be  ready  fifteen  minutes 
or  so  before  his  class  is  called.  The  girths  and  the 
balance  strap  should,  however,  be  left  loose  until  one 
is  ready  to  mount.  It  is  a  good  plan  for  the  exhibitor 
to  keep  his  eye  on  the  programme,  so  that,  if,  as  is 
usually  the  case,  the  classes  are  running  behind  time, 
the  horse  need  not  be  gotten  ready  too  soon. 

Always  mount  a  little  while  before  your  class  is 
called  to  get  your  horse's  back  down,  to  straighten 
out  his  paces,  and  to  warm  yourself  into  the  saddle. 

Do  not  wait  until  the  last  moment  to  see  that  your 
bridle  fits  or  that  your  saddle  is  properly  girthed.  Re- 
member that  preparedness  is  the  secret  of  most  suc- 
cess in  the  show  ring,  as  in  everything  else  in  life.  After 
you  have  been  in  the  saddle  a  while  tighten  up  your 
girths  and  balance  strap,  but  be  careful  that  they  are 
not  cinched  up  too  tight.  In  fact,  unless  you  know 
exactly  what  hole  the  balance  strap  should  go  in,  it  is 
best  never  to  seek  the  aid  of  some  strange  groom  at  the 
last  moment,  for  he  may  cinch  it  up  too  tight,  and  your 
horse  will  act  up. 

Try  to  enter  the  ring  first,  when  possible,  or  last, 
but  in  any  case  not  "in  a  bunch,"  for  this  starts  your 
horse  off  all  wrong.  If  your  mount  has  a  good  snappy, 
flashy  trot,  enter  at  that  gait  and  keep  trotting  until 
he  has  "settled"  down  and  all  the  other  entries  are 
in  the  ring.  If  your  horse  tires  quickly,  however,  and 
is  a  steady-going  animal,  it  would  be  best  to  enter  on 
a  walk  and  reserve  his  strength  for  later.  In  no  case 
would  it  be  advisable  to  come  into  any  horse-show 
ring  in  America  on  a  canter.  At  whatever  gait  you 
may  select,  do  not  in  any  case  be  alarmed  by  the  "ring- 


SHOWING  SADDLE  HORSES  179 

master,"  who  will  command  you  on  entering  at  once 
to  walk  in  single  file.  Nod  pleasant  acquiescence  to 
him  and  continue  on  your  way,  as  you  may  deem  most 
advisable.  You  may  rest  assured  that  the  "old  hands" 
at  the  game  are  not  likely  to  be  overawed  by  the  ring- 
master, so  that  if  you  alone  obey  him  and  try  to  enter 
at  a  walk  when  your  horse  is  still  far  from  steady,  you 
may  so  upset  the  animal,  that  he  will  be  at  a  disad- 
vantage throughout  the  rest  of  the  class. 

When  you  see  that  all  the  entries  have  come  in  the 
ring,  the  gate  is  closed  and  business  of  the  day  has 
begun,  pull  your  horse  into  a  flat-footed  walk,  and  if 
he  has  been  properly  broken,  let  him  walk  quietly 
with  head  loose,  but  without  sprawling.  Never  slow 
up  your  horse's  walk  merely  to  keep  in  single  file  at 
the  order  of  the  ringmaster,  for,  if  your  mount  is  fast 
enough  to  pass  his  competitors  on  a  flat-footed  walk, 
it  is  to  his  advantage  to  do  so,  and  to  do  so,  if  possible, 
directly  under  the  judges'  eyes.  In  order  to  bring  your 
horse  as  much  to  the  fore  as  possible,  always  take  the 
inside  circle  of  the  ring.  Never  allow  yourself  to  be 
"blanketed,"  that  is  hidden  from  the  judges'  view  by 
some  other  horse  walking  between  you  and  the  judges, 
and  while  looking  out  that  no  one  plays  this  trick  on 
you,  be  equally  careful  never  to  play  it  on  any  one 
else.  Cut  the  corners  of  the  ring  a  bit,  and  particularly 
that  end  of  the  ring  at  which  the  judges  are  not  stand- 
ing, but  don't  practise  it  too  "markedly,"  or  your 
friend  the  ringmaster  will  call  you  down  in  a  sententious 
voice. 

When  the  command  "trot"  is  given,  gather  your 
reins  gently  and  set  your  horse  at  the  pace  at  which 
he  trots  best,  just  as  fast  and  no  faster  than  he  can  go 
collectedly,  irrespective  of  what  your  neighbors  may 


180  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

be  doing.  Pass  any  one  you  like,  but  don't  race,  and 
when  the  judges  come  to  the  rail  and  stand  in  front 
of  your  approaching  mount  to  see  his  action  from  in 
front,  do  not  alter  his  pace,  but  keep  right  on.  It  is 
the  judges'  business  to  get  out  of  the  way  and  not  your 
business  to  avoid  them.  The  same  might  be  said  of 
the  ringmasters  and  totally  superfluous  grooms,  who 
bestrew  the  ring,  and  whom  I  prefer  to  knock  down 
rather  than  pull  my  horse  out  of  his  stride.  If  you 
have  to  wake  your  horse  up  by  a  touch  of  whip  or  spur, 
keep  your  eye  on  the  judges,  and  try  to  do  so  when 
their  backs  are  turned.  Don't  waste  your  horse's 
energy  or  your  own  unnecessarily,  but  make  him  go 
most  brilliantly  and  do  his  best  when  passing  the 
judges.  To  do  this  you  have  to  have  your  eyes  in  the 
back  of  your  head,  but  you  soon  get  used  to  it,  and 
become  as  clever  at  watching  every  move  of  the  judges, 
as  a  cat  watching  a  mouse. 

In  giving  these  instructions,  I  am,  of  course,  taking 
for  granted  that  the  actual  " riding"  of  your  horse 
has  long  since  become  automatic,  but  if  it  ha"s  not, 
and  you  and  your  horse  are  very  " green"  the  best 
thing  to  do  is  to  forget  the  judges  and  do  what  you 
can  to  ride  your  horse  advantageously. 

After  the  trot,  the  horses  will  be  asked  to  walk  again, 
before  the  command  of  " canter"  is  given.  During 
this  short  walk,  avoid  getting  into  a  crowd  of  horses, 
as  this  will  make  it  difficult  for  you  to  start  your  horse 
into  a  canter  properly.  Get  as  near  the  rail  as  possible, 
so  that  at  the  given  command  you  can  turn  your  horse's 
head  to  the  rail,  touch  his  flanks  (to  keep  his  hindquar- 
ters out),  and  break  into  a  canter  more  easily  than 
if  you  are  away  from  a  the  rail. 

As  the  horses  are  usually  going  round  to  the  right, 


SHOWING  SADDLE  HORSES  181 

your  mount  should  lead  on  his  off  or  right  foot.  The 
slower  the  canter  the  better,  for  a  horse  that  can  canter 
on  a  "ten-cent-piece,"  is  very  highly  thought  of.  In 
this  particular,  the  thoroughbred  has  it  all  his  own 
way,  for  there  are  few  horses  that  can  beat  him  at  it. 

A  few  judges  require  that  each  horse  start  canter- 
ing at  a  given  point  in  front  of  them,  which  is  a  very 
good  idea,  as  in  no  other  way  can  a  judge  tell  in  a  large 
field  of  horses  whether  each  individual  has  broken  on 
his  proper  foot  at  the  first  attempt. 

At  some  shows  the  figure  eight  is  required,  and  each 
horse  is  expected  to  change  leads  properly  in  the  centre 
of  the  ring.  If  he  is  troublesome  in  doing  this,  it  is 
best  to  pull  him  up  in  the  centre  and  start  him  on  the 
other  foot  rather  than  attempt  to  swing  him  into  a 
change,  as  might  be  done  with  a  more  properly  schooled 
horse.  In  championship  classes,  or  special  challenge- 
cup  competitions,  the  riders  are  sometimes  requested, 
one  at  a  time,  to  canter  their  horses  up  and  down  the 
rail,  leading  first  on  one  leg  and  then  on  the  other. 
To  do  this,  go  about  it  quietly,  keep  your  horse's  head 
near  the  rail  with  his  hindquarters  out  and  break  him 
almost  from  a  standstill;  at  the  top  turn  him  around, 
toward  and  not  away  from  the  rail,  again  point  his 
head  toward  the  rail  and  start  him  down  the  other  way 
on  the  other  lead.  If  there  are  many  "rail  birds  "  who 
are  thoughtlessly  leaning  over  the  edge  fluttering  pro- 
grammes, etc.,  do  not  hesitate  to  speak  to  them  and 
ask  them  please  to  draw  their  heads  and'  hands  in. 

In  breaking  a  horse  into  a  canter,  or  changing  leads, 
learn  to  tell  if  he  is  on  the  right  leg  by  the  "feel" 
and  by  the  "play"  of  his  shoulder  muscles.  Don't  lean 
over  the  side  and  look  down  at  his  feet,  as  so  many 
riders  do,  as  if  you  had  to  see  which  foot  he  was  leading 


182  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

on.  It  is  a  sign  of  very  poor  horsemanship  to  do  this 
and  a  habit  that  even  long  after  you  have  learned  to 
tell  by  the  feel  alone  is  hard  to  overcome.  Besides 
which,  as  Mr.  Gooch  smilingly  pointed  out,  it  gives 
the  judges  the  impression  that  there  are  doubts  in 
your  mind  whether  your  mount  will  break  right  or 
not,  whereas  you  really  wish  to  give  the  impression 
that  there  isn't  a  shadow  of  doubt  that  he  will. 

During  the  canter  your  horse  will  probably  be  called 
in.  Either  the  "discards"  are  left  to  the  last  or  they 
are  weeded  out  first,  a  process  which  is  by  far  the  sim- 
pler in  a  class  of  horses  where  there  is  no  outstanding 
winner.  In  lining  up  for  the  judges'  inspection,  the 
spot  nearest  the  judges'  stand  is  most  sought  after, 
as  this  is  thought  to  be  the  blue-ribbon  winner's  cor- 
ner. It  doesn't,  however,  make  a  particle  of  difference 
where  you  stand  if  you  are  on  a  good  one,  so  don't 
be  undignified  enough  to  scuffle  for  this  position;  re- 
membering that  the  only  necessary  precaution  to  take 
in  lining  up  is  not  to  get  into  a  bunch  or  allow  your- 
self to  be  hidden  away  in  a  crowd  of  horses.  If  neces- 
sary, pull  out  a  little  beyond  the  line  of  horses  so  as 
to  allow  your  horse  sufficient  "posing"  room.  Don't 
ask  a  groom  to  hold  your  animal's  head  unless  he  is 
extremely  fidgety,  but  let  the  reins  hang  loosely  on 
his  neck.  Make  him  stand  fairly  and  squarely  on  all 
four  feet,  without  slouching  or  resting  one  foot,  but 
don't  "spread"  him  with  his  fore  and  hind  feet 
stretched  way  apart  in  the  style  so  beloved  of  grooms. 

If  asked  to  strip  your  horse,  see  that  the  groom  uses 
some  alacrity  in  unsaddling,  for  I  have  always  been 
of  the  opinion  that  in  a  hot  contest  the  one  who  steps 
lively  and  keeps  his  horse  to  the  fore,  other  things 
being  equal,  will  have  a  better  chance  at  the  ribbon. 


SHOWING  SADDLE  HORSES  183 

I  have  judged  just  a  wee  bit  myself,  and  know  that 
in  many  cases  it  is  nip  and  tuck  between  two  horses, 
and  the  animal  who  makes  the  best  final  impression 
wins  out.  Therefore,  in  leading  the  horse  out,  throw 
the  reins  over  his  head,  make  him  stand  quite  squarely, 
and  try  to  keep  him  alert  with  pricked  ears  by  at- 
tracting his  attention.  Above  all,  hold  him  yourself 
and  don't  hand  him  over  to  some  indifferent  groom 
who  may  let  him  sprawl  or  slouch. 

After  this  final  inspection,  it  is  usually  all  over  but 
the  "shouting,"  and  there  is  nothing  more  to  do  but 
saddle  up  and  wait  decisions.  If  you  win,  for  heaven's 
sake  look  pleasant  and  don't  acquire  the  blase*  look  so 
many  of  our  parvenu  exhibitors  affect  in  order  to  pre- 
tend they  are  so  used  to  it  all  that  it  doesn't  really 
matter;  if  you  lose,  lose  gracefully  and  don't  begin 
long  yarns  of  excuses,  or,  worse  yet,  start  kicking  at  the 
judges  and  accuse  them  of  partiality.  In  nine  cases 
out  of  ten  the  best  horse  has  won. 

Horse  showing  is  a  game,  not  a  business,  and  the 
fun  of  it  should  consist  not  in  the  actual  number  of 
ribbons  won,  but  in  the  joy  of  competition,  the  pleasure 
of  riding  good-looking  horses,  and  the  company  of  other 
horse  lovers.  The  motto  of  every  exhibitor  of  horses 
should  be: 

"Not  the  quarry  but  the  chase, 
Not  the  laurel  but  the  race, 
Not  the  hazard  but  the  play, 
Let  me  enjoy  alway." 


CHAPTER  XII 

SHOWING  HUNTERS  AND  JUMPERS 

"Always  try  to  excel;  not  others,  but  yourself." 

Just  as.  the  show  hack  is  merely  an  especially  fine 
saddle  horse,  so  is  the  show  hunter,  as  far  as  conforma- 
tion is  concerned,  merely  a  superlatively  fine  hunter. 
When  it  comes  to  the  "performance"  of  the  animals, 
however,  we  find,  as  already  stated,  that  many  an  ex- 
ceptional hunter  is  nevertheless  absolutely  no  good 
in  the  ring  and  vice  versa;  that  many  brilliant  show- 
ring  jumpers — especially  among  those  kept  for  show 
work  pure  and  simple,  and  which  travel  around  the 
circuit  year  after  year,  are  no  good  in  the  field. 

The  ideal  combination  of  hunter  and  show-ring  per- 
former is  very  hard  to  find.  If  you  happen  to  have  a 
good-looking  hunter  it  will  do  him  no  harm  to  show 
him,  providing  that  it  is  not  overdone.  You  should, 
of  course,  not  school  him  too  often  over  brush  or  over 
easily  knocked  down  jumps,  which  might  lead  him 
to  take  chances  in  the  hunting  field.  Also  if  he  shows 
a  marked  dislike  for  the  game,  it  were  better  not  to 
force  him  to  do  it,  for  fear  of  spoiling  his  temper.  On 
the  other  hand,  I  know  of  no  case  in  which  judicious 
hunting  would  hurt  the  show-ring  performer,  and  as 
a  general  rule  it  only  freshens  him  up  and  makes  him 
keener  than  ever. 

In  saddle  classes,  as  we  have  already  seen,  thorough- 
bred blood  only  counts  favorably  under  certain  judges, 
but  in  hunter  classes  the  better  bred  a  horse  is,  other 
things  being  equal,  the  more  likely  he  is  to  win.     For 

184 


SHOWING  HUNTERS  AND  JUMPERS     185 

even  with  an  inferior  performance,  his  breeding  and 
"quality"  give  him  something  in  hand,  and  half-bred 
or  common  horses  will  be  obliged  to  jump  rings  around 
him  before  they  can  beat  him. 

In  entering  a  hunter  in  a  show  the  same  precau- 
tions as  to  the  shows  selected,  the  judges  under  whom 
he  is  to  appear,*  and  the  type  of  classes  entered  should 
be  taken  as  with  the  saddle  horse. 

The  preparation  of  a  show  hunter  begins  as  with 
a  saddle  horse:  about  three  or  four  weeks  prior  to 
the  event.  He  can,  however,  be  more  generally  hacked 
around  than  the  show  hack,  and  nothing  is  better 
for  his  training  than  long,  slow  walking  for  two  or  three 
hours  a  day,f  alternating  with  an  occasional  day  to 
hounds  to  make  him  keen.  It  must  be  remembered, 
however,  that  if  you  intend  to  show  a  horse,  though 
he  can  be  mildly  hunted  he  cannot  be  roughly  banged 
around,  and  the  pleasure  of  "pounding"  the  field  must 
be  foregone  for  some  time  prior  to  a  show.  Individual 
horses  vary,  of  course,  and  the  amount  of  work  or 
hunting  they  can  get  depends  largely  upon  whether 
they  go  off  their  feed,  lose  weight,  or  go  sore  after  hunt- 
ing. In  any  case,  I  would  advise  taking  the  precau- 
tion of  bandaging  the  prospective  show  hunter  when- 
ever he  is  hunted  or  schooled,  and  I  do  not  think  that  it 
would  be  wise  to  risk  taking  him  out  with  hounds  for 
the  last  ten  days  prior  to  a  show,  for  the  least  cut  or 
bruise  or  kick  which  he  might  get,  insignificant  though 

*  The  difference  among  the  hunter  judges  is  not  so  marked  as  in 
saddle  classes,  owing  to  the  fact  that  there  are  not  distinct  "types"  of 
hunters.  Of  course,  some  judges  are  unduly  hard  on  a  half-bred,  and 
will  actually  look  at  nothing  but  a  thoroughbred;  but  in  most  cases  a 
good  horse  of  any  breed  is  as  likely  to  win  under  one  hunter  judge  as 
another. 

t  Slow  trotting  up-hill  is  also  an  excellent  way  to  muscle  up  a 
hunter. 


186  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

it  was  in  itself,  would  put  him  out  of  the  running. 
Above  all,  in  preparing  for  a  show,  don't  let  any  one 
but  the  regular  groom  hack  him,  and  he  should  prefer- 
ably only  be  hunted  or  schooled  by  the  person  intend- 
ing to  show  him. 

The  schooling  of  an  absolutely  green  horse  should, 
of  course,  begin  many  many  months  prior  to  his  d6but. 
For  the  moment,  however,  we  will  merely  discuss  pre- 
paring for  a  show  a  horse  who  has  already  learned  the 
A  B  C  of  jumping,  or  one  who  is  possibly  a  qualified 
hunter.  If  the  latter,  he  has  to  be  gotten  used  to 
"made"  fences,  and  must  be  taught  that  turning  at 
a  fence  means  business,  and  that  slovenly  jumping 
and  "ticking"  will  not  be  allowed. 

Begin  three  or  four  weeks  before  the  show;  take 
your  prospective  show  horse  and  lark  him  over  a  few 
three-feet-six-inch  fences,  or  use  him  cub-hunting  a 
couple  of  times.  Vary  this  with  an  occasional  jump  in 
the  schooling  ground,*  say  twice  a  week,  and  for  the 
first  week  keep  the  fences  as  low  as  three  feet  six  inches 
and  jump  him  only  once  or  at  most  twice  at  a  time 
round  a  course  of  eight  jumps.  As  the  day  of  the  show 
approaches  the  bars  may  gradually  be  raised  higher. 

For  five-foot  classes,  or  triple-bar  jumpsf  special 
practice  may  be  required,  but  as  a  general  rule  four 

*  When  possible,  the  schooling  ground  or  paddock  should  not  be 
near  the  stables,  for  if  they  are,  horses  are  far  more  apt  to  sulk  and 
turn  sour.  If  feasible,  try  and  find  out  what  sort  of  jumps  are  going 
to  be  erected  at  the  forthcoming  show,  and  then  put  up  a  few  of  thia 
kind,  temporarily,  in  order  to  accustom  your  horse  to  them. 

f  A  great  deal  of  schooling  over  the  triple  bar  is  inadvisable  as  it  is 
inclined  to  make  a  horse  extend  himself  too  much.  The  same  may  be 
said  of  excessive  practice  over  broad  jumps.  In  fact,  I  have  found  that 
in  the  case  of  the  Grafton  Broad  jump,  composed  of  cardboard  boxes, 
a  free-going  bold  jumper  will  be  more  inclined  to  clear  them  well,  be- 
fore he  has  had  too  much  opportunity  to  become  familiar  with  them, 
and  to  realize  that  it  does  not  hurt  to  jump  into  them. 


Palmetto — over  the  triple  bar 


Confidence  making  the  world's  record  of  eight  feet  one-half  inch 
at  the  Syracuse  Horse  Show.     Dick  Donnelly  up. 


SHOWING  HUNTERS  AND  JUMPERS    187 

feet  four  inches  is  high  enough  to  school  over.  If  a 
horse  has  learned  to  jump  this  well  and  has  acquired 
confidence  in  himself  by  never  hearing  the  bars  rattle 
behind  him,  or  if  he  has  never  been  asked  to  do  more 
than  he  is  capable  of,  he  will  jump  a  few  inches  higher 
in  the  show  ring  without  any  trouble. 

If  a  horse  refuses  or  makes  a  mistake,  take  him  back 
over  the  jump  at  which  he  offended,  until  he  does  it 
perfectly,  but  go  quietly  and  gently  about  it  and  don't 
lose  your  temper.  When  he  has  done  it  well,  take 
him  home.  Don't  be  over-critical  with  a  horse  in- 
clined to  turn  sour,  and  if,  after  a  refusal  or  mistake, 
he  clears  the  jump  with  a  slight  tick,  let  it  go  at  that 
rather  than  spoil  his  temper.  Although  it  is  true  that 
some  horses  refuse  from  having  had  too  little  jumping, 
and  that  when  out  hunting  it  is  more  apt  to  be  the 
first  rather  than  the  last  fence  at  which  a  horse  refuses, 
nevertheless,  most  horses  refuse  from  too  much  jump- 
ing, and  more  horses  are  spoiled  from  too  much  school- 
ing than  from  too  little. 

The  best  possible  way  of  giving  a  horse  plenty  of 
practice  at  jumping,  without  running  the  risk  of  sour- 
ing him,  is  to  give  him  lessons  in  jumping  on  the  "long 
reins."  In  this  way  far  more  jumps  can  be  taken  at 
one  session,  and  the  jumps  can  be  made  much  higher 
than  would  be  wise  to  ride  a  horse  over.  The  effect  of 
this  is  to  make  all  jumps  thereafter  in  the  show  ring 
or  hunting  field  look  absurdly  small  to  him.  Unfor- 
tunately, few  persons  are  capable  of  handling  the  long 
reins  sufficiently  well  to  school  a  horse  with  them.* 

Much  of  the  preliminary  jumping  may  be  omitted 

*  Schooling  in  a  corral  is  excellent  in  many  ways,  and  for  some  horses, 
but  it  can  never  take  the  place  of  the  education  that  a  horse  can  re- 
ceive on  the  "long  reins." 


188  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

with  a  veteran  show-ring  jumper,  but  in  any  case 
he  must  be  regularly  exercised  to  get  him  fit,  or  he  may 
be  mildly  hunted  until  about  ten  days  before  the  show, 
and  jumped  once  or  twice  over  a  four-foot-four-inch 
jump  to  show  him  what  is  wanted  of  him.  It  must  be 
remembered  that  in  order  to  jump  well  his  "  jumping 
muscles"  must  be  in  good  condition. 

Schooling  in  pairs,  or  one  after  the  other,  is  not  ad- 
visable, as  it  is  apt  to  make  a  horse  too  hot.  Even  if 
horses  have  been  entered  in  a  pair  class,  with  a  little 
judgment  and  good  horsemanship  on  the  part  of  the 
riders,  animals  who  have  never  jumped  together  can 
make  a  very  creditable  performance  in  the  ring.  As  a 
general  rule  all  schooling  should  be  stopped  about  a 
week  before  the  show  in  order  to  freshen  the  horse 
up.  The  main  thing  to  remember,  in  schooling  hunters 
for  a  show,  is  not  to  get  them  sour,  or  stale,  for  they 
will  go  far  more  brilliantly  in  a  ring  if  they  are  not 
sick  of  their  work.  Time  and  time  again  I  have  seen 
grooms  unwittingly  ruin  a  good  horse  by  putting  him 
over  the  same  jump,  over  and  over  again  and  higher 
and  higher,  until  he  eventually  refused  or  made  a  mis- 
take, whereupon  they  felt  obliged  to  fight  him  to  a 
finish. 

The  hunter  may  be  clipped  or  not,  according  to  the 
state  of  his  coat,  and  whether  or  not  he  will  be  ex- 
pected to  hunt.  In  any  case,  in  addition  to  leaving  a 
saddle  mark  on  him,  his  legs  should  also  be  left  un- 
dipped.* 

The  manes  of  thoroughbred  hunters  should  be 
braided  in  the  same  manner  recommended  for  saddle 

*  The  line  where  the  unclipped  portion  ends  should  be  straight,  and 
the  effect  given  as  workmanlike  and  simple  as  possible.  Rounding  the 
line,  as  if  the  animal  wore  trousers,  is  senseless  and  ugly. 


SHOWING  HUNTERS  AND  JUMPERS    189 

horses,  while  on  common  horses  they  may  be  hogged. 
The  tails  should  be  slightly  pulled  at  the  butt  and 
banged  at  the  hocks  (see  illustration  facing  page  10), 
or  switched.  The  style  adopted  should  be  that  which 
is  best  suited  to  the  animal's  general  conformation. 

The  bridles  used  should  be  of  whatever  type  in  which 
the  horse  goes  best,  either  double  or  single,  with  a  plain 
leather  front  and  a  Cavasson  nose-band  (see  Chapter 
XV).  Martingales  and  breastplates  are  optional.  The 
saddle  should  be  of  a  good  comfortable  hunting  type. 
All  appointments  for  hunter  classes  are  given  in  detail 
in  the  lists  appended  to  Chapter  XVI. 

On  preparing  to  enter  the  ring,  mount  your  horse  a  lit- 
tle while  before  his  class,  and  see  that  your  tack  is  in 
order.  If  possible,  canter  or  trot  around  a  bit  outside  of 
the  ring  to  warm  him  up,  or,  at  an  indoor  show,  walk  up 
and  down  on  the  stable  floor;  no  horse  can  be  expected 
to  do  his  best  straight  out  of  his  stall.  If  you  have 
been  unable  to  move  around  before  entering  the  ring, 
the  next  best  thing  to  do  is  to  canter  once  around 
the  centre  of  the  ring  on  entering  it  and  before  you 
straighten  the  horse  at  his  first  jump. 

While  you  are  waiting  your  turn  to  go  in,  cast  a 
quick  glance  over  the  jumps  and  notice  whether  they 
have  been  put  up  straight  after  the  last  contestant 
has  knocked  them  down.  The  men  who  build  up  the 
jumps  in  the  ring  are  ignorant,  and  often  place  the 
bars  with  one  end  higher  than  the  other  or  at  a  dif- 
ferent height  from  that  at  which  the  last  horse  jumped. 
The  committee  and  judges  are  supposed  to  see  that  this 
sort  of  thing  does  not  happen,  but  very  few  judges 
pay  much  attention  to  it,  and  it  is  generally  up  to  the 
exhibitor  to  look  out  for  his  own  welfare.  Therefore, 
if  you  see  a  bar  that  is  crooked  or  a  wing  that  is  not 


190  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

properly  placed,  do  not  hesitate  to  ride  up  to  the  ring- 
master and  politely  ask  him  to  change  it  before  you 
jump.  No  one  will  think  less  of  you  for  this,  but,  on 
the  contrary,  they  will  realize  that  you  are  a  real  horse- 
man or  horsewoman. 

A  good  hunting  pace  is  preferred  by  most  judges, 
but  it  is  always  best  to  regulate  one's  gait  according 
to  the  individual  horse;  slow  if  he  jumps  best  that  way, 
or  fast  if  he  is  cleverer  in  this  style.  In  any  case  be 
sure  to  collect  him  at  the  corners  to  prevent  his  slip- 
ping; never  send  him  at  his  jump  at  an  angle,  leading 
on  his  wrong  foot,  or  cross-cantering.  As  most  rings 
are  right-handed,  the  horse  should  approach  the  jump 
leading  on  his  off  foot.  This  is  particularly  important 
in  a  lady's  horse,  for  if  he  is  leading  on  the  near,  in- 
stead of  the  off  foot,  and  should  happen  to  hit  the  jump 
and  fall,  he  is  more  apt  to  fall  on  the  near  side  and 
crush  the  rider.  For  this  reason  I  believe  that  even  on 
a  straightaway  course  a  woman's  hunter  should  always 
be  taught  to  go  down  at  his  jumps  leading  on  the  off 
foot. 

If  your  mount  is  very  hot-headed  he  may  have  to  be 
stopped  after  each  jump  and  restrained  up  to  a  certain 
point  before  being  allowed  to  go  down  to  it.  This 
sort  of  manoeuvring  will  undoubtedly  count  against 
him  in  hunter  classes,  but  it  will  not  tell  as  much 
against  him  as  would  the  poor  performance  that  he 
would  be  apt  to  make  if  allowed  to  sail  down  at  the 
jumps  at  too  rapid  a  pace. 

If  your  horse  is  a  refuser,  keep  a  sharp  lookout  for 
this  trick  at  the  first  jump,  as  this  is  the  one  he  is  most 
likely  to  take  advantage  of.  If  he  stops,  turn  him 
round  shortly  and  send  him  at  it  as  vigorously  as  pre- 
vious schooling  has  shown  necessary.    You  will  be 


SHOWING  HUNTERS  AND  JUMPERS    191 

allowed  three  trials  at  each  jump,  after  which  you 
must  make  your  exit,  but  in  case  this  happens,  don't 
lose  your  temper  and  whip  your  horse  as  he  leaves 
the  ring;  it  does  no  good  and  only  lowers  you  in  the 
estimation  of  the  public. 

If  your  horse  is  inclined  to  swerve  at  his  jumps, 
always  endeavor  to  point  him  at  the  side  of  the  jump 
toward  which  he  swerves  and  oblige  him  to  jump  in 
the  corner  as  near  the  wing  as  possible.  In  this  way 
he  will  have  so  little  room  to  swerve  that  it  will  be 
scarcely  perceptible.  The  same  thing  applies  to  a 
horse  that  runs  out,  in  which  case  it  is  wisest  not  to 
allow  him  to  get  under  way  too  far  from  his  jumps. 
If  possible  let  him  see  the  tip  end  of  your  stick  out  of 
the  corner  of  his  eye  on  the  side  at  which  he  likes  to 
run  out. 

When  riding  jumpers  in  pairs,  decide  with  your 
partner,  before  you  enter  the  ring,  which  one  of  you  is 
to  be  pace-maker.  Usually  the  slower  horse  of  the  two 
performs  this  function,  but  if  a  man  and  a  woman 
are  riding  together,  the  former  is  supposed  to  gauge 
his  pace  by  the  latter.  If  the  horses  become  separated 
during  the  jumping,  slow  up  and  get  together  again 
before  the  next  jump;  if  your  partner's  animal  refuses, 
go  ahead  over  the  jump  yourself  and  then  stop,  un- 
less the  refusal  has  taken  place  at  the  first  jump  of 
an  in-and-out,  in  which  case  go  on  over  the  second  jump 
before  stopping,  thus  giving  your  partner's  mount  a 
lead.  A  woman,  if  riding  with  a  man,  should  place 
her  horse  on  the  near  side,  unless  he  is  apt  to  swerve 
to  the  right,  in  which  case  she  should  place  him  on 
the  off  side,  for  swerving  horses  should  always  be  so 
paired  that  they  will  not  cross  each  other  and  cause 
an  accident.  As  a  general  rule,  a  horse  that  swerves 
badly  is  not  very  safe  for  pair  jumping. 


192  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

After  completing  the  course,  see  that  your  horse  is 
kept  moving  to  prevent  his  catching  cold.  If  he  is 
to  show  in  many  classes,  dismount  and  rest  him  as 
much  as  possible,  and  if  there  is  sufficient  time  before 
you  expect  to  be  called  back  into  the  ring,  loosen  his 
girth  and  balance  strap.  Under  no  circumstance  allow 
your  groom  to  let  him  remain  motionless,  for  he  will 
get  cold  and  stiff,  and  if  required  to  "jump  off"  will 
not  be  able  to  do  his  best. 

If  your  horse  is  called  in  to  be  judged  on  conforma- 
tion, remove  not  only  the  saddle  but  also  the  breast- 
plate or  martingale  (do  not  merely  knot  the  latter  up, 
as  it  is  not  an  adornment).  Lead  your  horse  into  the 
ring  yourself  and  see  that  he  is  standing  squarely  on 
all  four  feet  and  is  alert  and  wide-awake  when  the 
judges  are  looking  at  him,  but  do  not  allow  your  groom 
to  "ginger"  him,  unless  you  know  that  it  will  not 
upset  his  temper,  and  do  not  under  any  circumstances 
"spread"  him  when  standing. 

If  you  have  made  a  fairly  good  performance  and 
your  number  is  nevertheless  not  called,  do  not  make 
the  mistake  of  being  too  hasty  in  sending  your  horse 
home  to  his  stable.  I  have  seen  mistakes  occur  and 
a  horse  called  for  who  had  already  been  sent  away 
from  the  show  grounds. 

If  you  are  unfortunate  enough  to  make  a  bad  per- 
formance, many  well-meaning  friends  will  undoubtedly 
deluge  you  with  advice  as  to  how  you  should  have 
ridden  your  horse  in  order  to  win:  you  went  too  slow 
or  too  fast,  and  so  on  and  so  forth.  My  advice  is  not 
to  pay  any  attention  to  them;  it  is  very  easy  to  ride 
a  horse  from  the  ground  and  very  difficult  to  get  up 
and  do  the  trick,  and  the  only  advice  worth  listening 
to  is  that  from  some  thoroughly  experienced  horse- 


SHOWING  HUNTERS  AND  JUMPERS     193 

man  who  knows  the  horse  you  rode  and  has  seen  both 
you  and  your  animal  when  schooling. 

As  in  the  case  of  showing  saddle  horses,  try  to  be  a 
graceful  winner  and  a  cheerful  loser.  Don't  "protest" 
other  winners  unless  there  is  such  a  flagrant  breach  of 
rules  as  to  be  positively  harmful  to  exhibitors  in  gen- 
eral. The  ribbon  won  under  protest  carries  with  it 
but  little  glory.  I  have  shown  for  many  years,  and 
although  there  have  been  many  times  when  I  might 
have  entered  a  protest,  I  am  glad  to  say  that  up  to 
date  I  am  quite  guiltless  of  such  an  act.  If  one  hears 
of  an  unregistered  horse  being  entered  in  a  thorough- 
bred class,  of  a  ribbon  winner  appearing  in  a  novice 
class,  or  a  horse  who  never  to  your  positive  knowledge 
has  had  a  day  with  hounds  being  sneaked  into  a  "  quali- 
fied hunter"  class,  the  time  to  enter  your  protest  is 
before  not  after  the  class  has  been  judged.  Do  not 
wait  until  the  horse  has  beaten  you  and  then  kick  up 
a  row,  but  go  to  the  committee  before  and  make  your 
complaint  in  a  sportsmanlike  manner;  for  by  so  doing 
you  will  be  protecting  not  only  yourself  but  all  the 
other  exhibitors. 

On  the  whole,  however,  if  you  hope  to  be  popular 
in  the  show  ring,  you  could  not  do  better  than  to  fol- 
low the  example  of: 

"The  wise  old  owl  who  sat  in  an  oak, 
The  more  he  saw  the  less  he*  spoke, 
The  less  he  spoke,  the  more  he  heard, 
Why  can't  we  be  like  that  wise  old  bird." 


CHAPTER  XIII 
SUGGESTIONS  TO  HORSE-SHOW  MANAGEMENTS 

From  an  exhibitor's  point  of  view  many  of  the  fol- 
lowing suggestions  and  innovations  at  horse  shows 
might  be  welcome. 

In  saddle  classes  judges  should  more  often  ride  en- 
tries so  as  to  test  their  gaits  and  mouths.  In  this  way 
a  horse  that  " gives  a  good  ride"  will  not  be  turned 
down  for  the  more  showy  animal,  whose  rider  con- 
fidentially whispers  after  the  class:  "He  nearly  broke 
my  back  at  a  trot." 

I  have  recently  seen  a  suggestion  (written  undoubt- 
edly by  some  onlooker)  that  exhibitors  be  compelled 
to  forfeit  all  their  prize  moneys  if  they  scratch  in  any 
classes.  Such  an  arrangement  would  only  be  fair  if 
the  "time-card"  were  printed  at  the  same  time  as 
the  prize  list,  so  that  exhibitors  in  making  their  en- 
tries, would  know  just  how  many  classes  per  day  to 
enter  in,  and  not  find  out  at  the  last  moment  that  all 
the  classes  the  horse  is  entered  in  come  on  the  same 
day  and  that  the  horse  will  be  obliged  to  tire  himself 
out  just  prior  to  showing  in  some  important  challenge 
cup.  Time-cards  cannot,  however,  in  the  nature  of 
things,  be  printed  until  all  the  entries  have  come  in, 
and  therefore  any  such  suggestion  as  the  above  is  likely 
to  meet  with  disapproval  and  quite  rightly  so. 

I  agree  that  it  is  exceedingly  unsportsmanlike  to 
scratch  one's  horses  every  time  one  gets  into  a  "huff" 
at  the  judging,  but  there  are,  nevertheless,  circum- 
stances and  cases  in  which,  in  justice  to  the  horse, 

194 


HORSE-SHOW  MANAGEMENTS         195 

he  should  be  scratched,  and  the  fine  imposed  by  the 
association  for  so  doing  is  quite  sufficient  punishment 
to  prevent  promiscuous  and  unnecessary  scratching. 

In  regard  to  jumping  and  hunting  classes,  I  would 
suggest  that  all  shows  follow  the  example  of  the  Na- 
tional. Have  the  secretary  of  the  show  correct  wrong 
entries  on  receiving  them  and  not  leave  it  to  the  ex- 
hibitors to  file  complaints  against  horses  entered  both 
in  fight  and  heavy  weight  classes,  etc. 

I  am  sorry  to  say  that  more  than  one  prominent 
exhibitor  is  guilty  of  "swapping"  horses  from  middle- 
weight to  lightweight  classes  to  suit  his  convenience. 
Such  errors  can  readily  be  checked  up  by  the  Official 
Horse  Show  Blue  Book,  and  unless  the  judges  them- 
selves are  responsible  for  the  change,  offenders  should 
be  heavily  fined  or  suspended  from  showing  for  a 
definite  period  by  the  National  Association  of  Horse 
Shows. 

In  thoroughbred  classes,  shows  should  demand  that 
the  horse's  " certificate  of  registration"  accompany 
the  entry.  Unfortunately  some  secretaries  seem  un- 
able to  distinguish  between  the  certificate  of  a  regis- 
tered thoroughbred  and  the  certificate  of  the  American 
Saddle  Horse  Association,  denoting  a  pure-bred  Ken- 
tucky animal.  The  trouble  is  that  the  word  "thor- 
oughbred" is  too  loosely  applied. 

The  ring  committee  for  the  jumping  classes  should 
be  selected  not  for  their  social  standing  or  their  wealth, 
but  for  their  knowledge  of  horsemanship,  and  this 
committee  should  undertake  to  see  that  the  jumps 
are  carefully  and  correctly  put  up  and  at  the  same 
height  for  each  contestant.  At  most  shows  this  is  left 
to  ignorant  ring  hands;  the  bars  are  placed  crookedly 
and  the  wings  in  impossible  positions.     Fortunately, 


196  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

we  occasionally  have  judges  who  look  after  these  things, 
or  the  exhibitors  rise  in  a  body  and  take  the  matter  in 
their  own  hands,  but  it  is  rightly  the  duty  of  the  com- 
mittee and  should  not  be  shirked  by  them. 

I  would  also  meekly  suggest  that  if  horse-show  com- 
mittees wish  to  please  both  spectators  and  exhibitors, 
they  put  the  jumping  and  hunting  classes  at  more 
advantageous  times  on  the  programme,  instead  of  rele- 
gating them  either  to  the  opening  class  of  the  show,  to 
meal-hours,  or  to  the  very  end,  when  the  riders  are  tired 
and  most  of  the  spectators  have  gone  home.  At  some 
shows  the  jumpers  perform  for  an  empty  house,  and 
when  the  last  class  comes,  even  the  exhibitors  and  the 
judges  themselves  are  yawning  and  wishing  the  thing 
over.  There  is  always  so  much  chat  about  it  being  diffi- 
cult to  have  the  jumps  carried  in  and  out  and  set  up  in 
the  middle  of  a  session,  but  there  is  no  reason  why  time 
should  not  be  allowed  on  the  programme  for  this,  in 
order  that  the  general  public,  who  like  to  see  the  jump- 
ing, may  have  an  occasional  view  of  it.  If,  as  it  is  often 
argued,  these  classes  are  put  early  and  late  on  purpose 
to  draw  the  crowd  and  keep  them  longer,  then  all  I 
have  to  say  is  that  if  the  saddle  classes  can't  hold  the 
audience  on  their  own  merits,  let  them  do  without  an 
audience;  there  is  certainly  no  reason  why  the  jump- 
ing horse  should  always  be  the  goat. 

Another  suggestion  is  regarding  the  wording  of  the 
hunter  championship  class.  As  it  now  stands,  either 
the  winners  jump  against  each  other,  in  which  case 
an  element  of  luck  enters  in  (since  even  the  most 
consistent  performer  of  the  show  might  possibly 
make  a  mistake  in  this  one  class),  or  else  the  horses 
are  not  required  to  jump  and  the  class  becomes  a 
"model"  class,  pure  and  simple,  and  the  handsomest 


HORSE-SHOW  MANAGEMENTS         197 

and  not  the  best  hunter  and  jumper  at  the  show 
wins  the  class.  This  is  most  certainly  not  as  it 
should  be  if  the  word  championship  is  to  have  any- 
real  meaning.  A  class  for  "model"  hunters  is  an 
excellent  thing  and  should  be  included  in  every  show 
as  well  as  a  prize  for  the  most  consistent  jumper,  but 
it  should  not  be  confused  with  the  championship.  It 
is  grossly  unfair  that  horses  who  have  gained  their 
eligibility  to  the  championship  by  some  fluke,  such 
as  perhaps  winning  a  blue  or  red  in  a  class  of  only  one 
or  two  entries,  should  be  able  to  walk  into  the  cham- 
pionship class  and  carry  off  the  ribbon  on  conforma- 
tion alone,  beating  those  horses  who  have  won  the 
most  ribbons  throughout  the  show.  In  the  year  of 
1918  at  the  National  Show  there  was  just  such  a  case; 
a  handsome  thoroughbred  horse,  who  had  gone  very 
badly  throughout  the  week,  managed  to  spruce  up 
and  win  one  class,  thereby  gaining  eligibility  to  the 
championship;  he  entered  this,  and  being  judged  on 
conformation  and  quality  alone,  past  performances 
not  being  taken  into  account,  he  calmly  walked  off 
with  the  ribbon;  a  win  he  in  no  possible  way  deserved. 
This  sort  of  thing  makes  the  word  championship  ab- 
solute y  meaningless. 

In  a  championship  class  a  horse  should  be  judged 
on  his  conformation  plus  his  record  throughout  the 
week  of  the  entire  show,  and  the  ribbon  awarded  to 
the  best  made  and  most  consistent  hunter  of  the  show* 

There  is,  however,  a  still  further  improvement  in 
the  wording  of  championship  classes,  which  I  might 

*  This  plan  mustmot  be  confused  with  the  one  in  vogue  at  the  Devon 
horse  show  where  each  ribbon  that  a  horse  wins  counts  so  much  toward 
a  final  prize.  This  scheme  is  excellent  in  its  way,  but  does  not  exactly 
fill  the  need  of  a  championship,  inasmuch  as  in  the  Devon  way  the 
conformation  of  a  horse  has  naturally  been  counted  each  time  that  he 


198  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

suggest  and  which  would  apply  not  only  to  hunters  but 
to  saddle  horses,  ponies,  harness  horses,  and  all  classes 
as  well.  Throughout  all  horse  shows  a  system  of  cham- 
pionships might  be  adopted  similar  to  the  plan  used 
by  the  American  Kennel  Club.  In  other  words,  change 
the  name  of  the  present  championship  class  to  "  win- 
ners," judge  it,  in  so  far  as  the  hunters,  as  just  suggested, 
then  make  each  win  in  a  " winners"  class  count  a  cer- 
tain number  of  points  toward  a  championship.  The 
exact  number  of  points  that  it  is  to  count  being  de- 
termined by  the  size  of  the  show  and  the  rating  that 
it  has  under  the  association  rules.  A  championship 
would  thus  be  achieved  after  a  certain  number  of  wins 
in  "winners"  classes.  In  order  to  adopt  this  plan, 
shows  should  be  graded  according  to  the  number  of 
entries  and  a  fixed  rating  given  each  show;  thus  a 
prize  in  a  winners  class  at  the  National  might  count, 
say,  five  points  toward  a  championship,  while  a  prize 
in  a  winners  class  at  a  small  show,  like  Islip,  for  ex- 
ample, would  only  count  one  point.  The  wording  of 
Section  G  of  the  American  Kennel  Club,  "re  champion- 
ships," which  is  as  follows,  might  easily  be  rewritten  to 
suit  horse  championships : 

"Winners  of  fifteen  points  in  the  winners  class  under 
three  different  judges  (at  least  six  points  of  which  shall 
be  won  at  two  different  three-point  shows)  shall  here- 
after become  champions  of  record,  and  if  registered 
in  the  stud-book  shall  be  entitled  to  a  championship 


won  a  ribbon,  and  therefore  in  the  final  award  has  really  been  counted 
over  and  over  again  instead  of  just  once. 

At  Olympia  even  in  saddle  classes  every  horse  is  obliged  in  the 
championship  class  to  carry,  somewhere  on  his  bridle,  all  the  ribbons  he 
has  won  during  the  week.  This  is  an  excellent  scheme  to  enable  the 
public  as  well  as  the  judges  to  see  exactly  in  what  relation  the  animal 
stands  to  all  the  others. 


HORSE-SHOW  MANAGEMENTS         199 

certificate,  and  on  payment  of  three  dollars  will  re- 
ceive a  championship  medal." 

Now  that  all  horse  shows  of  any  account  are  under 
the  control  of  a  central  body  like  the  Association  of 
American  Horse  Shows,  this  plan  could  be  adopted 
quite  easily  with  but  few  changes  in  our  present 
programme.  Then  and  then  only  would  the  word 
"champion"  affixed  to  the  name  of  a  show  horse  mean 
as  much  as  it  does  when  seen  attached  to  that  of  a 
show  dog. 


CHAPTER  XIV 
SHOWING  ABROAD 

"If  once  we  efface  the  joys  of  the  chase 
From  the  land  and  oujtroot  the  stud; 
Good-bye  to  the  Anglo-Saxon  race, 
Farewell  to  the  Norman  blood." 

— Gordon. 

For  the  benefit  of  those  exhibitors  who  have  won 
over  here  and  have  become  enthusiastic  enough  to 
wish  to  embark  upon  foreign  shows,  as  well  as  for  the 
benefit  of  those  persons  expecting  to  import  English 
or  Irish  show  horses,  a  few  words  as  to  how  shows  are 
conducted  over  there  may  not  come  amiss. 

To  begin  with,  don't  be  carried  away  with  the  idea 
that  because  your  saddle  horse  has  won  at  Madison 
Square  Garden,  he  is  therefore  capable  of  winning  at 
Olympia  or  at  Royal  Richmond.  If  he  isn't  a  thor- 
oughbred— or  very  nearly  so — if  he  at  all  resembles  a 
Kentucky  horse — or  is  a  wee  bit  peacocky  and  har- 
nessy,  even  though  he  may  have  won  at  every  show  in 
the  whole  of  the  United  States,  over  there  he  will  get 
nothing  better  than  the  gate.  The  judges,  as  well  as 
the  audience,  will  merely  smile  at  the  sight  of  him,  and 
mildly  wonder  where  you  left  the  carriage  and  harness 
that  belong  to  him.* 

Presuming  that  your  horse  is  a  thoroughbred,  re- 
member that  you  will  have  to  compete  against  three 
or  four  times  the  number  of  horses  that  you  meet  over 

*  There  are,  of  course,  classes  for  cobs  and  weight-carrying  horses. 
Cobs  are  chunky  little  horses  of  more  or  less  harnessy  type,  but  totally 
different  from  our  Kentucky  or  trotting  type  of  saddler.  They  are 
intended  rather  for  the  use  of  a  fat  gentleman  than  for  show  purposes. 

200 


SHOWING  ABROAD  201 

here.  I  have  ridden  in  saddle  classes  at  Olympia,  at 
which  there  were  seventy  entries,  and  in  championship 
classes  in  which  twenty-five  were  eligible  for  competi- 
tion. There  is  a  " preliminary"  judging  which  takes 
place  in  the  morning,  after  which  weeding  out  there 
still  remain  usually  as  many  as  twenty-odd  horses  to 
compete  against  each  other  in  the  afternoon  or  evening. 

As  the  thoroughbred  is  the  accepted  type  of  saddle 
horse  in  England,  the  canter  is  the  gait  most  in  favor 
and  most  critically  judged.  The  horses  enter  at  a 
walk,  which  is  followed  by  a  very  short  trot  and  then 
an  interminable  canter,  at  which  gait  most  of  the  horses 
excel  and  are  the  poetry  of  motion. 

After  the  canter  is  over,  each  rider  is  given  a  few 
moments  in  which  he  is  supposed  to  show  his  mount 
off  as  he  sees  fit,  choosing  whatever  gait  at  which  he 
thinks  the  horse  goes  best.  During  this  period  the 
ring  usually  looks  like  an  animated  polo  field,  for  the 
riders  take  pride  in  showing  how  handy  their  mounts 
are;  changing  leads,  stopping  short,  etc.,  and  going 
through  all  the  feats  that  would  be  acceptable  in  a 
rough-and-ready  hack  for  the  country.  The  first  year 
I  rode  at  Olympia  I  was  mounted  on  a  gray  thorough- 
bred of  Mr.  Walter  Winan's,  called  "Fairyhill,"  who 
had  a  superb  trot;  so  during  this  sort  of  "catch  as 
catch  can"  period,  I  endeavored  to  show  him  off  at 
what  I  considered  his  best  gait,  namely  the  trot.  I 
won  the  class,  but  after  it  was  all  over,  Mr.  Gooch 
gently  and  smilingly  advised  me,  next  time,  not  to 
trot  so  much  as  the  judges  didn't  care  so  much  about 
that.  Personally  this  advice  rather  delighted  me,  as 
the  canter  was  my  favorite  gait. 

When  the  horses  are  lined  up  for  inspection,  the 
judges  pick  out  the  best  dozen,  or  so,  and  ride  them  to 


202  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

test  their  gaits  and  mouths.  As  I  have  already  stated 
elsewhere,  English  show  horses  are,  as  a  general  rule, 
far  better  broken  than  those  found  in  American  rings, 
nevertheless,  inasmuch  as  nearly  all  English  show 
horses  are  thoroughbreds,  the  term  "manners"  is  some- 
what differently  interpreted  than  with  us.  A  horse  is 
expected  to  have  a  far  more  complete  " school"  educa- 
tion, he  must  canter  at  a  slow  collected  pace  with 
loose  rein  and  arched  neck,  must  change  leads  and 
back,  etc.,  and  yet  he  is  more  often  pardoned  for  a 
little  "playing  up,"  or  kicking,  than  with  us,  unac- 
customed as  we  are  to  the  thoroughbred  saddle  horse. 

In  a  jumping  class  at  Olympia  there  are  often  as  many 
as  270  horses,  and  one  class  sometimes  takes  several 
days  to  judge.  The  jumps  are  mostly  local  jumps,  as 
well  as  trick  and  fancy  jumps;  triple  bars,  double  oxers, 
railway  gates,  etc.,  which  would  require  quite  some 
schooling  over  before  an  American  horse  could  nego- 
tiate them.  They  make  the  great  mistake  at  Olympia, 
as  well  as  at  the  Ballsbridge  show  in  Dublin,  of  hav- 
ing no  classes  for  hunters  to  jump.  Their  hunters 
are  not  requested  to  jump  and  are  judged  purely  on 
conformation  and  type,  and  their  jumpers  are  awarded 
ribbons  solely  on  their  performance.  It  is  well  to  bear 
this  fact  in  mind  when  buying  a  foreign  horse.  The 
fact  that  he  has  won  a  first  prize  in  a  hunter  class  at 
Olympia,  or  Ballsbridge,  does  not  necessarily  mean 
that  he  has  ever  jumped  a  stick  in  his  life.  In  addition 
to  the  regular  hunter  and  jumping  classes  at  Olympia, 
there  are  also  most  charming  classes  for  children's 
hunters,  most  of  them  clean-bred  or  well-bred  animals, 
ranging  about  15  hands  in  height. 

At  the  Ballsbridge  Horse  Show  in  Dublin,  which 
lasts  two  weeks,  and  is  the  most  famous  hunter  show 


— 

*>»»"*!"*      "««*~i 

'      .^      <        «■     :'■'..  ^"-Lr^—^-U        '•*.                                                         ■■'•■    '  't?»ii."V''^»  •".-Sv^lW 

CTBJWHWJH'   |                                               „ 

^^-^=^*SiCS^^^I 

iS 

Ballsbridge  Horse  Show,  Dublin,  1913. 
The  stone  wall  in  the  foreground  is  five  feet  eight  inches  in  height. 


Olympia,  London,  1913. 


SHOWING  ABROAD  203 

in  the  world,  there  are  besides  other  breeding  classes, 
etc.,  three  different  rings  going  at  once  for  hunters 
alone.  In  these  are  judged,  separately,  the  light- 
weight, middleweight,  and  heavyweight  hunters,  and 
the  horses  are  simply  ridden  around  the  enclosure  at  a 
walk,  trot,  and  canter.*  The  jumping  (in  which  per- 
formance alone  counts)  takes  place,  simultaneously 
with  the  other  classes,  over  a  course  in  front  of  a  huge 
grand  stand.  The  course  consists  of  great  banks  and 
drains  and  a  wall  five  feet  two  inches  high.  No  horses 
unaccustomed  to  Irish  jumps  could  possibly  expect  to 
compete,  but,  for  that  matter,  no  one  would  be  likely 
to  take  hunters  to  Ireland — it  would  be  like  "carrying 
coals  to  Newcastle."  There  are  usually  so  many 
jumpers  competing  in  these  classes  that  they  are  paired 
off;  the  best  one  of  each  pair  again  being  required  to 
jump  it  off  in  company  with  another  horse  and  so  on 
up  to  the  finals,  just  like  a  tennis  tournament. 

*  At  Ballsbridge  the  first  prize  is  a  red  ribbon,  and  the  second  a  blue. 


CHAPTER   XV 

SADDLES,  BRIDLES,  AND  OTHER  TACK 

"There's  naught  a  trifle, 
Though  small  it  appear. 
Small  sands  make  the  mountains, 
Minutes  make  the  year, 
And  trifles  Life." 

— Young. 

Two  things  are  of  utmost  importance  in  a  saddle: 
first,  that  it  fits  the  horse  to  a  nicety,  and  second, 
that  it  fits  the  rider.  As  the  range  of  difference  be- 
tween various  side-saddles  is  far  greater  than  that  ex- 
isting between  any  two  cross-saddles,  the  exact  make, 
shape,  and  size  of  a  saddle  is  of  even  more  impor- 
tance to  a  woman  than  it  is  to  a  man.  This  is  a  point 
that  is  too  little  appreciated  by  the  average  man,  when 
he  asks  a  woman  to  ride  a  horse  in  a  saddle  so  totally 
different  from  anything  that  she  has  ever  been  in  that 
she  cannot  help  but  feel  strange  in  it.  I  personally 
feel  more  at  home  on  a  strange  horse  in  my  own  saddle, 
than  I  do  on  my  own  horse  in  a  strange  saddle. 

In  a  small  stable,  one  side-saddle,*  if  well  made  and 
large  and  roomy  as  to  tree,  may,  by  the  help  of  numnahs 
and  pommel  pads,  be  made  to  fit  many  horses,  but 
whenever  it  is  possible,  it  is  a  far  better  plan  to  have 

*  The  side-saddle  consists  of  (1)  the  tree  or  wooden  frame,  (2)  the 
panel  or  cushion  to  render  it  soft  against  the  animal's  back,  (3)  the 
leather  covering  of  the  seat,  etc.,  (4)  the  leaping  head  and  crutch,  (5) 
the  stirrup  leather,  called  "leather"  for  short,  (6)  the  stirrup  "iron," 
(7)  the  girths,  (8)  the  balance  strap. 

The  tree  consists  of  two  wooden  bars  held  together  in  front  by  the 
steel  gullet-plate,  and  in  the  rear  by  the  cantle.  Over  the  open  space 
in  the  tree  are  stretched  strong  hempen  webs.  The  "points"  of  the 
tree  are  attached  to  the  gullet-plate  and  extend  down  into  the  pockets 
of  the  covered  saddle. 

204 


SADDLES  AND  BRIDLES  205 

different  saddles,  each  especially  fitted  to  the  horse 
on  whom  it  is  most  used. 

In  order  to  keep  the  saddle  from  shifting  about  and 
giving  the  horse  a  sore  back,  and  in  order  that  the  rider's 
weight  may  be  so  evenly  distributed  that  no  pressure 
will  fall  on  the  animal's  back-bone,  the  bars  of  the  tree 
must  fit  absolutely  accurately — thus  bringing  all  the 
rider's  weight  to  bear  on  those  muscles  which  run  ad- 
jacent to  the  back-bone.  The  two  bars  should  never 
be  less  than  four  inches  apart.  At  the  same  time  a 
fair  amount  of  space  must  be  left  between  the  gullet- 
plate  and  the  animal's  withers.  This  last  may  satis- 
factorily be  accomplished,  without  giving  undue  height 
to  the  fore  part  of  the  saddle,  by  having  it  well  "cut 
back"  in  front.  The  gullet-plate  should,  in  a  well- 
made  saddle,  be  of  sufficient  strength  to  bear  the  rider's 
weight  without  changing  its  shape  and  bearing  down 
on  the  animal's  withers. 

Before  the  rider's  weight  is  in  the  sadcfle  there  should 
be  about  two  inches  between  the  withers  and  the  gullet- 
plate.  But  the  only  proper  way  to  determine  if  a  sad- 
dle fits  well  at  this  point  is  to  run  the  fingers  into  this 
space  after  mounting.  Unless  two  or  three  fingers,  one 
on  top  of  the  other,  can  easily  be  inserted,  a  pommel  pad 
or  numnah  should  temporarily  be  used  and  the  saddle 
altered  at  the  earliest  possible  moment.  Any  rubbing 
which  might  occur  on  the  horse's  withers  will  be  very 
hard  to  cure,  owing  to  the  fact  that  there  is  but  little 
flesh  over  the  bone,  at  that  point,  to  insure  healing. 

The  points  of  the  tree*  are  usually  made  of  different 
lengths.    The  near  point  must  be  long,  so  as  to  help 

*  It  is  of  interest  to  note  that  the  trade  of  "tree"  making  is  quite 
distinct  and  separate  from  that  of  the  saddlers.  There  is,  for  example, 
only  one  tree  maker  in  the  city  of  New  York,  to  whom,  in  fact,  even 


206  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

keep  the  saddle  in  place,  but  the  off  point  must  be 
comparatively  short,  so  that  in  the  event  of  the  animal 
turning  sharply  and  abruptly  in  a  narrow  place  the  tree 
will  not  spread.  If  the  points  of  a  saddle  have  origi- 
nally been  fitted  to  a  deep-girthed  horse,  the  stuffing 
and  panels  on  the  inside  of  the  tree  will  be  dragged 
away  from  the  points,  if  used  on  a  fighter-girthed 
animal.  This  is  naturally  due  to  the  fact  that,  as  the 
points  are  stiff,  they  cannot  adapt  themselves  to  the 
animal's  sides  in  the  same  way  that  the  stuffing  does. 

The  upper  crutch,  or  "pommel,"  *  as  it  is  often  called, 
should  not  be  placed  way  up  on  the  horse's  withers, 
but  far  enough  down  to  enable  the  rider  to  press  the 
lower  part  of  her  right  leg  firmly  and  flatly  against 
the  animal's  shoulder.  On  the  other  hand,  the  crutch 
must  not  be  placed  so  far  down  that  the  rider's  right 
thigh  will  be  off  the  line  that  is  parallel  with  the  horse's 
back-bone.  The  upper  crutch  should  be  about  six  and 
one-half  inches  in  height,  depending  to  a  certain  extent 
on  the  size  of  the  rider's  leg.  (See  Figs.  1  and  2,  page 
89.)  If  too  long,  the  crutch  will  poke  the  skirt  up  in 
an  ugly  fashion,  and  if  too  short,  it  will  not  afford 
sufficient  grip  for  the  right  leg.  In  a  saddle  intended 
only  for  show  purposes,  the  crutch  may,  for  neatness' 
sake,  be  made  shorter  than  in  one  intended  for  real 
work. 

The  leaping  head  (invented  about  1830  by  a  French- 
man, M.  Pellier)  enables  the  rider  to  use  her  left  leg 

people  in  the  West  are  obliged  to  send.  This  accounts  for  the  intermi- 
nable delays  that  one  is  obliged  to  undergo  when  having  repairs  made 
to  a  saddle-tree. 

*  This  upper  crutch  is  often  technically  spoken  of  as  the  "near" 
head,  so  called  because  before  the  advent  of  the  leaping  head  all  side- 
saddles had  an  "off"  crutch  in  the  shape  of  a  sort  of  handle,  which  the 
rider  might  either  grasp  with  her  right  hand  or  else  which  she  might 
use  by  wedging  her  right  leg  between  it  and  the  "near"  crutch. 


SADDLES  AND  BRIDLES  207 

in  maintaining  a  firm  seat.  The  angle,  the  curve,  and 
the  exact  position  of  this  leaping  head  is  of  utmost  im- 
portance. 

The  angle  should  be  such  that  the  bearing  surface 
which  it  presents  to  the  leg  is  parallel  to  the  direction 
of  the  upper  portion  of  the  leg,  when  in  position.  (See 
Figs.  1  and  2,  page  89.) 

The  curve  should  be  so  arranged,  that  the  leaping 
head  will  catch  the  rider's  leg  about  four  or  five  inches 
above  the  knee,  but  at  the  same  time  enable  the  leg 
to  get  fully  under  it.  This  permits  the  rider,  when 
pressing  against  it,  also  to  press  the  flat  of  the  knee 
against  the  flap  of  the  saddle.  If  the  leaping  head  is 
too  short,  or  not  sufficiently  curved,  or  arranged  at 
an  improper  angle,  the  rider  will  find  in  pressing  against 
it  that  the  tip  end  of  the  leaping  head  will  poke  into 
her  leg  instead  of  half  encircling  it,  as  it  should.  More- 
over, in  such  cases,  the  more  she  presses  against  it,  the 
farther  will  her  leg  be  carried  outward  and  away  from 
the  saddle,  weakening  her  hold  and  bringing  her  weight 
too  much  to  the  near  side. 

As  a  rule,  most  side-saddles  have  two  holes  into  which 
the  leaping  head  may  be  screwed,  as  desired.  I  have 
yet  to  see,  however,  the  need  of  the  lower  hole.  When 
the  leaping  head  is  used  in  this  hole,  it  is  so  far  away 
from  the  upper  crutch  that  the  rider  is  unable  to  ob- 
tain any  purchase.  (Of  course  the  opposite  extreme, 
in  which  the  "pommels"  are  too  near  together,  is  also 
prejudicial  against  a  firm  seat.)  The  exact  distance 
between  the  two  pommels  is  best  determined  by  the 
individual  rider;  a  short-legged  woman  requiring  pom- 
mels nearer  together,  in  order  to  get  a  good  grip,  than 
a  long-legged  woman. 

Inasmuch  as  the  lower  screw  hole  for  the  leaping 


208  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

head  is  quite  an  unnecessary  adjunct,  it  would,  I  think, 
be  a  great  improvement  were  the  leaping  head  riveted 
instead  of  screwed  onto  the  saddle.  Screws  have  a 
nasty  way  of  becoming  worn  in  the  thread,  causing 
the  leaping  head  to  wabble  and  even  to  spin  around 
just  when  most  needed. 

The  width  of  the  leaping  head  and  upper  crutch  is 
also  of  utmost  importance.  For  hacking  or  for  show- 
ing saddle  horses  on  which  the  trot  is  often  indulged 
in,  narrow  " pommels"  will  be  found  to  be  far  and 
away  the  best.  They  feel  less  clumsy  than  the  broad 
pommels  and  enable  the  rider's  left  leg,  when  rising 
to  a  trot,  to  clear  the  leaping  head  with  far  greater 
ease.  Rising  to  a  trot  is  consequently  executed  with 
more  grace  in  a  narrow-pommelled  saddle  than  in  a 
broad-pommelled  one. 

On  the  other  hand,  for  jumping,  for  hunting,  or  for 
riding  green  horses,  the  wide  pommels  are  preferable,  as 
they  give  a  much  firmer  grip.  Also  for  riding  long  dis- 
tance their  broad  surface  is  less  tiring  than  the  narrow 
surface,  and,  owing  to  their  thickness,  the  rider  need 
not  shorten  up  her  leather  as  much  to  obtain  a  good 
grip  as  she  would  be  obliged  to  do  with  narrow  pom- 
mels. 

The  panel  of  the  side-saddle  should  be  evenly  and 
smoothly  stuffed  in  two  cushions  on  each  side  of  the 
horse's  back,  leaving  an  air  space  about  three  and 
one-half  inches  wide  along  the  animal's  back-bone. 
Although  the  saddle  must  not  be  so  overstuffed  that 
it  will  shift  its  position,  an  evenly  marked  division 
should  always  exist  between  the  two  cushions.  This 
is  particularly  essential  on  a  horse  with  a  prominent 
back-bone,  who  is  most  likely  to  get  rubbed  along  this 
line. 


SADDLES  AND  BRIDLES  209 

The  stuffing  under  the  cantle  of  the  saddle  must 
never  be  allowed  to  get  flat,  and  should  be  carefully- 
watched  for  any  signs  of  settling  down.  The  stuffing 
of  the  entire  panel  should  be  of  curled  horsehair  or 
of  fine  wool,  free  from  lumps  (called  best  flock).  It 
should  never  be  composed  of  an  inferior  flock,  which 
consists  mostly  of  cotton  waste  that  forms  lumps, 
causing  the  saddle  to  shift  about  and  giving  the  animal 
a  sore  back.  For  this  reason  it  is  as  necessary  to  go 
to  a  first-class  saddler  for  alterations  in  the  stuffing 
as  it  would  be  were  one  ordering  a  new  saddle. 

If  the  near  rear  side  of  the  saddle  starts  to  sag,  do 
not  let  the  saddler  make  the  mistake  of  adding  more 
stuffing  at  this  point.  Sagging  to  the  near  side  can  be 
far  more  effectively  remedied  by  putting  some  addi- 
tional stuffing  on  the  off  side,  a  little  to  the  front,  be- 
yond the  waist  of  the  saddle. 

The  panel  of  all  saddles  should  preferably  be  lined 
with  leather,  which  will  be  cool  and  soft  to  the  horse's 
back,  and  will  last  almost  as  long  as  the  saddle  itself, 
providing  that  it  is  well  taken  care  of.  Next  to  leather 
in  preference,  and  more  popular  among  grooms,  owing 
to  the  fact  that  it  needs  less  care,  is  a  good  quality  of 
linen  called  "Brown  Holland."  Serge  linings  permit 
of  alterations  being  made  in  the  stuffing  by  means  of 
slits  or  by  the  insertion  of  a  seat  awl,  but  in  spite  of 
this  advantage,  they  are  not  practical,  as  they  ab- 
sorb sweat  and  soon  become  dirty  and  prickly.* 

The  covering  of  a  first-class  saddle  should  be  of 
genuine  well-seasoned  pigskin.     Owing  to   the  com- 


*  No  matter  of  what  material  the  lining  may  be,  it  should  always 
be  well  sponged  off  after  it  is  brought  in,  and  if  of  leather,  rubbed  with 
a  little  plain  yellow  soap.  Soft  soap  renders  the  leather  pliable  at 
first,  but  afterward  it  becomes  hard  and  full  of  cracks, 


210  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

parative  delicacy  of  this  leather  the  flaps  of  the  saddle 
are  made  of  a  single  thickness  of  calf  or  cow  skin, 
stamped  to  imitate  pigskin.  The  genuine  article  may 
be  told  from  the  imitation  by  the  presence  of  the  "bris- 
tle holes."  In  some  saddles  the  seat  and  the  "pom- 
mels" are  covered  with  buckskin  or  doeskin,  as  this 
supposedly  gives  a  firmer  grip  to  the  rider.  Although 
there  is  no  objection  to  some  sort  of  dark-colored  rough 
leather  being  used  for  this  purpose  on  the  "pommels," 
it  gives  the  saddle  an  unworkmanlike  and  amateurish 
appearance  when  used  on  the  seat. 

The  near  flap  should  be  perfectly  flat  and  without 
any  stuffing  or  padding,  while  the  little  extra  flap  that 
covers  the  safety  bar  should  be  sufficiently  small  so 
as  not  to  catch  in  the  top  of  the  rider's  boot.  The  off 
flap  should  be  absolutely  plain  and  unadorned  by 
pocket  or  monogram.  In  some  saddles,  used  expressly 
for  showing  hacks,  this  flap  is  cut  almost  in  half,  al- 
lowing the  girth  tugs  to  show.  This  is  an  ugly  and 
ridiculous]  fashion  and  not  nearly  as  smart  or  sensible 
as  a  flap,  which  is  cut  quite  narrow,  so  as  to  show  as 
much  of  the  horse's  forehand  as  possible. 

The  first  saddle  of  this  description  was  made  by 
Bach  for  Miss  Hopeton  D.  Atterbury  (Mrs.  Wm. 
Quaid),  and  was  used  with  great  success.*  Even  at 
best,  however,  such  a  small  saddle,  although  extremely 
smart  for  showing  hacks,  is  not  practical  for  more 
general  use,  and  is  quite  impossible  to  use  as  a  hunt- 
ing saddle.    Therefore,  unless  a  woman  possesses  more 

*  Great  care  must  be  taken  that  these  saddles  are  not  made  so  small 
as  to  render  them  a  useless  toy.  Leaving  off  the  balance  strap  is  apt 
to  destroy  the  balance  of  the  saddle  and  render  it  useless  except  for  a 
few  moments  in  the  show  ring.  In  order  to  obviate  this  difficulty  the 
saddler,  Knoud,  makes  these  small  saddles  so  that  they  can  be  used 
either  with  or  without  a  balance  strap. 


SADDLES  AND  BRIDLES  211 

than  one,  a  larger  and  more  roomy  saddle  is  the  wiser 
choice. 

The  seat  of  a  saddle  should  be  large  enough  to  ex- 
tend a  few  inches  behind  the  rider,  for  if  shorter  than 
this,  much  of  her  weight  will  fall  on  the  cantle  and 
be  likely  to  give  the  horse  a  sore  back.  The  abso- 
lutely level  seat,  so  fashionable  among  saddlers,  is 
useful  for  show  purposes  only.  For  security  in  jump- 
ing or  hunting,  there  must  be  a  slight  dip  which,  al- 
though scarcely  perceptible  to  the  eye,  is  sufficient  to 
conform  to  the  rider's  anatomy.  In  all  cases  the  seat 
should  be  " eased  off"  a  trifle  on  the  near  side,  just 
behind  the  leaping  head,  in  order  to  enable  the  rider 
to  get  as  close  to  the  horse  as  possible.  Close  to  the 
cantle,  the  near  side  should  be  made  a  little  higher 
than  the  off  side,  so  that  any  tendency  of  the  rider  to 
slide  down  on  this  side  may  be  counteracted.  When 
standing  on  the  ground  on  the  near  side  of  the  horse, 
the  off  side  of  the  saddle  should  be  concealed  from 
view  by  the  near  side. 

The  stirrup  leather  should  be  attached  to  a  safety 
bar,  and  under  no  circumstances  should  it  be  fastened 
to  the  balance  strap,  as  in  old-fashioned  saddles,  nor 
should  the  leather  be  a  fixture  to  the  saddle,  as  in  some 
men's  racing  saddles. 

The  proper  kind  of  safety  bar  releases  the  leather 
if  the  rider  is  thrown  with  her  foot  caught  in  the  iron, 
no  matter  whether  she  falls  from  the  off  or  the  near 
side  of  the  horse;  but  it  should  not  come  undone  too 
readily  should  the  rider  happen  to  draw  her  foot  back 
sharply  when  in  the  saddle.  If  both  these  require- 
ments cannot  be  fulfilled  by  the  same  bar,  then  the 
first  must  be  chosen  rather  than  the  second,  for  on  the 
surety  with  which  the  safety  bar  releases  the  leather 


212  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

depends  the  safety  of  the  rider.  Even  if  the  leather 
does  occasionally  come  out  when  it  is  not  supposed 
to,  it  is  not  likely  to  cause  a  woman  who  rides  in  a 
correct  way  any  serious  inconvenience.* 

The  leather  in  itself  should  be  soft  and  pliable  and 
very  strong.  The  arrangement  for  altering  the  length 
of  the  leather  should  consist  of  a  hook  (covered  with  a 
leather  guard)  instead  of  a  buckle.  In  order  that  the 
rider,  when  mounted,  may  be  able  to  alter  the  length 
of  the  leather  without  unduly  raising  her  skirt,  the 
hook  should  be  fairly  near  the  iron  and  not  in  close 
proximity  to  the  safety  bar  as  in  a  man's  saddle.  By 
having  the  hook  low  down,  there  is  also  less  danger  of 
its  hurting  the  rider's  leg. 

The  stirrup-iron  should  be  of  steel,  the  same  as  a 
man's  iron.  It  should  be  small  enough  to  prevent  the 
foot  from  slipping  entirely  through  it,  but  large  enough 
not  to  squeeze  the  foot.  The  sole,  or  tread,  of  the  iron 
should  be  about  two  and  one-half  inches  wide,  as  this 
width  is  less  apt  to  tire  the  rider's  foot  than  a  narrower 
one.  A  roughened  tread  gives  a  firmer  grip  than  a 
smooth  one,  but  rubber  pads  should  not  be  used,  except- 
ing for  children  or  for  the  very  aged.  The  iron  should 
not  be  too  light,  for  a  light  iron  is  more  likely  to  become 
jammed  on  the  foot  in  case  of  an  accident,  moreover,  if 
lost  off  the  foot  while  riding,  a  light  iron  is  harder  to 
regain  than  a  heavier  one,  as  the  latter  does  not  swing 
about  so  much. 

*  Bars,  working  on  the  principle  of  those  used  in  Whippey,  Mayhew, 
or  Martin  saddles,  are  very  satisfactory.  The  bar  on  many  Champion 
Wilton  saddles  cannot  come  out  as  long  as  the  rider  is  in  the  saddle, 
which  is  an  advantage;  but,  on  the  other  hand,  were  she  thrown  with- 
out dragging  the  leather  with  her,  and  were  the  horse  to  gallop  on  alone 
the  leather  immediately  flies  off.  To  obviate  this  difficulty  these  sad- 
dles are  provided  with  an  extra  iron  in  a  case.  This  convenience 
might  well  be  used  in  connection  with  any  hunting  saddle. 


SADDLES  AND  BRIDLES  213 

If  a  proper  safety  bar  is  used  there  is  absolutely  no 
need  for  the  use  of  such  an  ungainly  looking  thing  as 
a  "  safety  stirrup,"  and  in  any  case  it  never  should  be 
used  except  in  conjunction  with  the  safety  bar.  By 
itself  it  is  quite  unreliable.* 

The  " furniture"  of  a  side-saddle  consists  of  the 
girth  "tugs"  or  straps,  two  metal  "D's"  on  the  off 
rear  of  the  saddle  under  the  cantle  (to  which  is  at- 
tached, when  needed,  the  hunting-case),  and  two  "D's" 
on  front  of  the  saddle  on  each  'side  of  the  withers, 
through  which  the  straps  of  the  breastplate  may  be 
passed. 

Girths  should  be  soft,  pliable,  and  fairly  broad,  for 
although  narrow  girths  make  a  horse  sweat  less  than 
broad  ones,  they  are  more  apt  to  chafe  him.  Leather 
girths,  if  well  oiled  and  properly  cared  for,  are  the  best, 
as  they  fulfil  the  above  requirements  and  are  the  neat- 
est in  appearance.  White  or  brown  webbing  girths 
are,  however,  more  practical  in  a  stable,  in  which  the 
help  is  inexperienced.  Girths  made  of  narrow  parallel 
strips  of  leather,  rawhide,  or  cord,  are  admittedly  cooler 
than  any  other  kind,  they  also  take  a  good  strong  grip 
without  necessitating  tight  girthing;  but  as  it  is  almost 
impossible  to  distribute  the  pressure  evenly  with  such 
girths,  they  are  apt  to  wrinkle  the  horse's  skin  and 
gall  him.  Woollen  or  serge  girths  are  heating  to  the 
horse  and  should,  of  course,  never  be  used. 

*  Many  safety  stirrups  open  both  ways,  in  which  case  the  rider's 
foot  can  slip  through  and  be  hung  up  just  as  in  an  ordinary  iron.  If, 
to  obviate  this,  the  iron  opens  only  one  way  there  is  considerable  danger 
of  its  being  put  with  the  wrong  side  toward  the'heel,  through  ignorance 
or  carelessness.  If  the  rider  is  thrown  from  the  off  side  of  the  saddle 
the  average  safety  iron  is  not  likely  to  work  properly.  Were  the  horse 
to  fall  on  the  rider  the  iron  is  prevented  from  working  by  being  jammed. 
Then,  again,  if  the  "outer"  iron  is  too  large  in  proportion  to  the  rider's 
foot  she  may  get  hung  up  in  it  even  after  the  "inner"  iron  has  opened 
and  released  her  foot. 


214  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

Aside  from  the  material,  the  best  style  of  girth  to  use 
is  what  is  called  a  "Fitz William"  girth.  It  consists 
of  a  broad  under  girth  on  top  of  which  is  passed,  through 
narrow  loops,  a  narrow  upper  girth.  This  last  is  very- 
convenient  for  the  use  of  a  martingale,  which  can 
thereby  be  put  on  or  removed  without  touching  the 
under  girth,  or  endangering  the  position  of  the  saddle 
during  the  operation.  By  pressing  on  the  centre  of  the 
broad  girth,  the  narrow  one  has  the  advantage  of  keep- 
ing the  edges  of  the  former  inclined  outward,  and  thus 
preventing  a  horse  from  becoming  girth-galled.* 

All  girth  buckles  should  be  of  the  double  "bar" 
variety,  and  the  girths  on  a  side-saddle  should  always 
be  fastened  high  up  on  the  near  side,  so  as  not  to  make 
a  bunch  under  the  rider's  leg.  By  this  arrangement 
there  is  plenty  of  girth-strap  length  left  on  the  off  side, 
should  the  girths  require  tightening  after  the  lady  is 
mounted,  f 

The  purpose  of  the  balance  strap  is  to  prevent  any 
undue  motion  of  the  saddle,  and  to  counteract  any 
excess  of  weight  which  might  fall  on  the  near  side.  Al- 
though, as  we  have  already  stated,  small  show  saddles 
are  sometimes  made  without  a  balance  strap,  it  is  not 
wise  to  attempt  any  extended  riding  without  one. 

NumnahsJ  are  of  great  assistance  in  making  a  sad- 
dle fit  a  varying  number  of  horses.  In  fact,  I  have 
found  that  even  with  a  saddle  that  has  been  espe- 
cially fitted  to  a  particular  animal,  it  is  wiser  always 

*  In  default  of  a  girth  of  this  kind,  a  substitute  may  be  made  by 
tying  an  old  silk  boot-lace  around  the  girth  to  bend  the  edge  outward. 
This  is  sometimes  useful  on  young  horses  or  those  with  very  low  fore- 
hands, on  whom  the  saddle  and  girths  are  apt  to  slip  forward  and  cause 
sores  behind  the  elbows. 

t  Grooms  should  at  once  report  any  rips  in  girths  or  girth  tugs,  for 
on  the  security  of  these  safety  in  the  saddle  depends. 

X  So  called  from  the  Hindustani  word  for  "felt." 


SADDLES  AND  BRIDLES  215 

to  use  numnahs  in  hunting  or  on  long  rides.  With 
their  use,  sore  backs  are  almost  an  unknown  thing. 

Numnahs  are  usually  made  of  felt,  and  should  be  as 
thin  as  is  consistent  with  their  doing  the  double  duty 
of  soaking  up  sweat  and  of  protecting  the  horse's  back. 
They  should  be  sufficiently  long  to  extend  about  two 
inches  beyond  all  the  bearing  surfaces  of  the  saddle, 
in  order  to  prevent  the  edge  of  the  cloth  from  pressing 
into  the  skin  and  rubbing  it.*  Care  must  be  taken 
that  the  straps  which  fasten  the  numnah  to  the  saddle 
are  properly  adjusted,  so  as  to  prevent  the  numnah 
from  slipping  about. 

Leather  numnahs  (which  do  not  absorb  sweat), 
although  smart-looking,  are  not  as  capable  of  pro- 
tecting the  horse's  back  as  felt  ones,  and,  unless  well 
taken  care  of,  soon  become  hard  and  stiff.  On  the 
whole  the  thick  white  numnahs  called  Scriven's  Patent 
Wilson  numnahs  are  perhaps  the  best,  for  they  do  not 
shrink  as  do  ordinary  ones.f 

Sheepskins  are  much  used  in  South  America,  in 
Mexico,  and  in  the  West,  and  are  placed  with  the  woolly 
side  next  to  the  animal's  back.  Although  a  bit  untidy- 
looking,  unless  very  closely  fitted  to  the  saddle,  they 
are  excellent  for  use  on  horses  with  excessively  tender 

skins.J 

Knitted  pommel  pads  are  useful  in  helping  to  make 

a  saddle  fit  without  rubbing  a  horse's  withers. 

When  out  hunting,  an  oblong  leather  case,  contain- 

*  For  this  same  reason  it  is  usually  inadvisable  to  cut  holes  in  a 
numnah  in  order,  for  example,  to  take  the  weight  off  a  sore  spot.  As 
a  rule,  in  such  cases  the  edge  of  the  hole  presses  into  the  horse's  skin 
and  makes  bad  matters  worse. 

t  A  white  numnah  should  always  be  used  on  a  gray  horse,  for  a  col- 
ored one  looks  untidy  and  stains  the  animal's  coat. 

%  Numnahs  lined  with  sponge  are  only  satisfactory  if  great  care  is 
taken  to  keep  them  soft  by  constant  dampening. 


216  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

ing  a  metal  sandwich  case  and  a  glass  flask,  may  be 
fastened  to  the  saddle  by  means  of  the  two  "D's" 
on  the  off  rear  side  of  the  saddle.  Other  accessories 
such  as  a  leather  case  containing  a  wire-cutter,  a  case 
with  an  extra  stirrup-iron,  are  occasionally  carried.  If 
a  woman  is  in  a  hunt  team  and  acts  as  M.  F.  H.,  or 
Huntsman,  she  carries  a  horn  case;  if  a  Whip,  she 
carries  "couples"  for  the  hounds. 

In  attaching  all  cases,  care  must  be  taken  to  see 
that  the  straps,  which  fasten  to  the  "D's",  are  of  a 
proper  length  to  prevent  the  cases  flapping  against 
the  animal's  sides. 

Bridles  are  of  an  endless  variety,  but  no  matter  of 
what  kind,  they  should  be  of  well-seasoned,  well-pressed 
and  pliable  leather  and  preferably  that  dark  shade  of 
brown,  acquired  by  time  and  much  "dressing." 

Each  horse  should  have  a  bridle  fitted  to  his  especial 
use,  or  if  the  bridle  has  to  be  used  on  many  different 
horses,  the  bit  should  always  be  raised  or  lowered  as 
may  be  found  necessary  to  suit  each  particular  case. 
Attention  to  such  details  is  one  of  the  first  things  de- 
manded of  a  real  horseman  or  horsewoman. 

The  bit  and  headstall  of  a  bridle  should  be  sewn 
in;  buckles  bespeak  the  livery-stable.  Where  it  is 
necessary  to  do  much  interchanging  of  bits,  the  French 
stud  or  clip  may  be  used;  although  it  is  more  apt  to 
catch  on  the  rings  of  a  martingale  than  the  sewn-in 
variety,  nevertheless,  it  is  smart-looking,  and  from  the 
outside  is  almost  indistinguishable  from  the  sewn-in 
rein. 

The  reins  should  neither  be  so  thin  that  they  double 
up  in  hand,  nor  yet  so  broad  and  stiff  that  they 
are  clumsy.  A  good  average  is  about  seven-eighths 
of  an  inch  in  width,  and  thin  enough  to  be  pliable. 


Miss  Sarah  (1896). 
By  Imp.  the  Jacobite  out  of  Push. 


Dick  Christian,  a  famous  blood  hunter. 


SADDLES  AND  BRIDLES  217 

On  a  plain  snaffle  bridle  the  reins  are  usually  a  little 
broader  than  in  a  double  bridle  and  may  be  "laced," 
in  order  to  prevent  their  slipping  should  they  get  wet.* 

In  a  double  bridle  the  bit  (curb)  reins  are,  some- 
times, a  trifle  narrower  than  the  bridoon  (snaffle)  reins, 
in  order  to  aid  the  rider  to  distinguish  them.  While 
in  a  double  bridle  that  is  to  be  used  for  hunting  the 
bridoon  reins  may  also  be  "laced."  To  a  person  un- 
accustomed to  "laced"  reins,  they  may  at  first  seem 
rather  clumsy,  but  once  accustomed  to  them,  one  feels 
quite  lost  without  them,  even  in  dry  weather. 

The  hand-pieces  of  most  bit  reins  are  for  some  un- 
accountable reason  nearly  always  sewn  together,  in- 
stead of  being  buckled  together  as  they  should  be, 
to  enable  one  to  put  the  martingale  on  this  rein.  If 
a  martingale  is  used  it  should  always  be  put  on  the 
bit  and  not  on  the  bridoon  reins.  A  point  which  we 
will  discuss  later. 

The  "front"  or  brow-band  of  a  bridle  should  be  of 
plain  leather  for  hunters  and  of  colored  braided  ribbon 
for  hacks.  Colored  celluloid  or  colored  leather  should 
never  be  used. 

The  nose-band  may  be  either  a  narrow  stitched 
strap,  which  is  attached  to  the  same  headstall  as  the 
bits,  or  it  may  be  a  plain  unstitched  band  on  an  entirely 
separate  headstall. 

The  former  variety  is  purely  ornamental  and  is  suited 
for  hacks;  the  latter,  called  a  "Cavasson"  nose-band, 
is  the  correct  one  to  use  on  hunters.  It  may  be  raised 
or  lowered  by  means  of  the  cheek-pieces,  so  that  pres- 

*  "Lacing"  is  preferable  to  having  leather  strips  sewn  across  the 
reins,  or  tapering  the  reins  in  such  a  way  that  they  are  narrower  in 
front  of  the  hand  than  behind.  Red  rubber  hand-pieces,  to  prevent 
slipping,  savor  too  much  of  the  race-track. 


218  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

sure  can  be  brought  to  bear  on  whatever  portion  of 
the  horse's  nose  is  desired.  On  a  puller  it  may  be 
tightened  so  as  to  prevent  the  horse  from  opening  his 
mouth,  or  from  catching  the  bit  with  his  teeth  and 
shifting  it  about.  It  is  evident  that  the  lower  the  nose- 
band is  placed  the  more  effective  it  will  be  in  closing 
the  jaw.*  The  useful  purposes  of  the  nose-band  are 
too  little  understood  by  people  who  seem  to  think 
that  it  exists  simply  for  looks. 

The  throat-latch  of  a  bridle  should  neither  be  so 
loose  as  to  look  untidy  nor  so  tight  that  it  exerts  pres- 
sure on  the  horse's  windpipe.  In  order  to  present  a 
tidy  appearance,  all  the  strap  ends  on  a  bridle  should 
always  be  carefully  placed  in  their  "keepers." 

No  matter  what  style  of  bit  is  used,  it  should  be 
accurately  fitted  to  the  horse's  mouth,  and  should 
neither  be  so  narrow  as  to  pinch  the  lips  nor  so  wide 
as  to  permit  of  the  animal  catching  hold  of  it  and  bor- 
ing on  one  side  in  order  to  relieve  the  pressure  on  the 
other  side  of  the  jaw. 

Only  the  best  hard-forged  steel  should  be  used  for 
bits.  Forged  wrought-iron,  annealed  cast-iron,  or 
plated  and  nickel  bits,  recommended  because  they 
will  not  rust,  are  not  as  strong  as  steel  and  often  have 
flaws  in  them.  Unless  the  purchaser  has  inside  knowl- 
edge as  to  the  exact  meaning  of  the  trade-marks  on 
bits,  which  designate  the  material  of  which  they  are 
made,  he  should  only  purchase  from  a  reliable  firm 
whose  word  he  can  trust. 

Bits  differ  as  much  as  the  hands  of  the  rider  and  his 
ability  to  use  them.    In  a  large  stable,  where  many 

*  In  extreme  cases  where  a  very  tight  nose-band  is  required,  the  rear 
portion  of  it  may  be  covered  with  a  bit  of  rubber  tubing  to  prevent  it 
hurting  the  edges  of  the  lower  jaw. 


SADDLES  AND  BRIDLES  219 

horses  are  kept,  a  various  assortment  of  bits  and  bridles 
may  be  needed  to  suit  the  different  animals.  The 
proper  bit  for  any  horse  is  that  which  gives  the  rider 
full  control  over  the  animal,  and  enables  him  to  make 
the  horse  do  exactly  what  is  required  of  him,  and  yet 
accomplishes  its  purpose  with  least  severity.  "The 
reputation  that  some  people  have  for  good  hands  is 
often  as  much  a  good  head  in  fitting  and  adjusting 
the  bit,  as  in  any  special  delicacy  in  handling  it." 

The  first  thing  to  be  remembered,  however,  is  that 
unless  the  former  owner  of  the  horse  has  recommended 
some  particular  type  of  bit  in  which  the  animal  goes 
well,  on  general  principles  the  simplest  bit  should 
always  be  tried  first.  For  a  hunter  a  plain  snaffle  or 
a  Weymouth  double  bridle;  for  a  hack  a  Weymouth 
or  a  simple  Pelham.  It  is  not  until  one  has  tried  all 
the  simpler  forms  of  bits,  and  has  failed,  that  severe 
or  complicated  bits  should  ever  be  essayed,  and  even 
then  only  with  great  care.  In  nine  cases  out  of  ten  a 
horse  who  would  go  like  a  lamb  in  a  simple  Weymouth, 
would  act  up  in  a  high  port.  Dealers  and  grooms  are 
apt  to  urge  owners  to  collect  a  large  and  fancy  assort- 
ment of  bits  simply  to  get  the  commission  that  they 
obtain  through  their  purchase. 

Bits  may  roughly  be  divided  into  snaffles,  curbs, 
and  Pelhams.  The  simplest  and  least  severe  of  .these 
is  the  plain,  ring  snaffle,  which  is  distinctly  an  undress 
bit,  suited  for  exercising,  and  excellent  for  many 
hunters,  especially  for  the  inexperienced  horseman,  as 
with  it  he  has  little  chance  of  interfering  with  the 
animal's  mouth.  It  may  be  true,,  that  only  one  horse 
in  a  thousand  goes  well  in  a  snaffle,  but  it  is  equally 
true  that  only  one  person  in  ten  has  good  enough  hands 
to  use  a  double  bridle  properly. 


220  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

A  snaffle,  of  course,  is  quite  unfitted  for  riding  or 
showing  a  hack,  owing  to  the  fact  that  it  acts  by  direct 
pressure  on  the  animal's  mouth  and  gives  no  leverage 
by  which  a  horse  may  be  made  to  collect  himself. 

There  are  many  varieties  of  snaffles,  but  for  all  ordi- 
nary purposes  for  which  a  snaffle  may  be  used,  the 
plain  straight  bar  snaffle,  the  slightly  curved  (half 
moon),  or  the  plain  jointed  snaffle  are  the  best.  Twisted 
snaffles  and  chain  snaffles,  composed  of  links,  are  all 
very  severe,  and,  as  a  general  rule,  do  more  harm  than 
good  and  should  never  be  used  except  by  an  experi- 
enced horseman.*  This  also  applies  to  the  use  of  the 
gag,  the  object  of  which  is  to  enable  the  rider,  by  means 
of  pulleys,  to  raise  the  head  of  an  animal  who  bores, 
or  who  charges  his  jumps  with  his  head  down.  Should 
the  gag  be  touched,  however,  at  the  wrong  moment, 
it  is  likely  to  bring  a  horse  down.  In  any  case  the 
French  gag  is  the  best  one  to  use,  as  it  accomplishes 
its  object  by  means  of  a  pull  on  the  headstall,  rather 
than  by  squeezing  the  horse's  lips,  thereby  making 
them  callous. 

Snaffles  may  be  either  leather-covered,  to  lessen  their 
severity,  or  an  entire  leather  snaffle  may  be  made. 
If  a  metal  bit  is  covered,  it  is  preferable  to  do  so  with 

*The  double-ring  snaffle  is  the  same  as  a  single-ring  snaffle,  with 
the  exception  of  an  additional  pair  of  rings  of  the  same  size,  placed  on 
the  inside.  To  these  inner  rings  the  cheek-piece  of  the  bridle  is  at- 
tached, and  when  used  in  the  ordinary  way  the  only  effect  it  has  is  to 
permit  of  the  full  pull  of  the  reins  falling  directly  on  the  bars  of  the 
mouth.  The  more  general  use  of  the  bit  is  to  convert  it  into  a  New- 
market snaffle,  by  attaching  a  nose-band  to  the  inner  rings,  in  which 
case,  pressure  may  be  brought  to  bear  entirely  on  the  nose  of  the 
animal.  It  is  often  useful  on  a  puller.  Side  lines,  which  are  an  at- 
tachment rather  than  a  bit,  give  the  rider  great  control  over  a  mean 
horse,  by  means  of  pulleys  on  the  saddle  through  which  the  rein  passes, 
before  going  into  the  rider's  hand.  This  arrangement,  it  goes  with- 
out saying,  should  only  be  used  by  the  experienced. 


SADDLES  AND  BRIDLES  221 

a  removable  cover,  such  as  the  Hancock  curl  bit  mouth 
cover,  which  curls  automatically  around  the  bit  and 
can  be  removed,  to  permit  of  inspecting  and  cleaning 
the  bit.  This  is  much  safer  than  having  the  bit  per- 
manently covered,  in  which  case  the  metal  may  be- 
come corroded  and  worn  underneath  without  being 
noticed. 

In  a  double  bridle  the  snaffle  should  always  be  spoken 
of  as  the  bridoon.  The  bridoon  may  be  either  of  the 
plain,  half-moon,  or  jointed  variety.  It  is  much  smaller 
and  thinner  than  that  used  in  a  snaffle  bridle,  but  in 
no  case  should  it  be  so  thin  as  to  irritate  the  animal's 
mouth.  In  fact,  all  bits  should  be  fairly  thick  and 
round  in  order  to  avoid  this.  To  be  smart  the  rings 
of  the  bridoon  should  be  flat. 

The  different  action  which  the  bit  of  a  double  bridle 
has  on  the  bars  of  the  mouth  depends  largely  on  the 
shape  of  the  mouthpiece;  whether  it  is  sliding  or  fixed, 
in  the  height  and  shape  of  the  bend  or  "port"  in  the 
centre  of  the  mouthpiece,  and  on  the  length  of  the 
cheeks.  Sliding  mouthpieces  are,  as  a  rule  (particularly 
in  the  hands  of  an  indifferent  rider),  better  than  station- 
ary mouthpieces,  as  with  the  former,  any  jerk  from  the 
rider's  hands  is  more  or  less  taken  up  by  the  sliding. 
The  chief  purpose  of  the  port  is  to  take  the  weight  of 
the  bit  off  the  horse's  tongue  (which  is  not  very  sensi- 
tive) and  bring  it  all  to  bear  on  the  more  sensitive 
bars  of  the  mouth.  Under  no  circumstances  should 
it  be  high  enough  to  touch,  let  alone  hurt,  the  roof  of 
the  horse's  mouth.  A  maximum  height  would  be  about 
one  and  two-thirds  inches,  and  the  port  should  be  wide 
enough  to  enable  the  tongue  to  He  in  it  comfortably. 

The  length  of  the  upper  portion  of  the  cheek  of  the 
bit  (measuring  from  the  centre  of  the  mouthpiece  to  the 


222  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

upper  eye,  into  which  the  headstall  passes)  is  usually 
about  one  and  three-quarters  to  two  inches.  If  shorter 
than  this,  it  gives  less  lever  action,  and  if  longer  there 
is  more  downward  pull  on  the  headstall,  and  the  curb- 
chain,  instead  of  lying  in  the  chin  groove,  works  up 
and  presses  on  the  sensitive  bony  portion  of  the  horse's 
jaw. 

The  lower  portion  of  the  cheek*  averages  about 
four  to  four  and  one-half  inches  in  length,  but  it  may 
be  lengthened,  to  increase  the  severity  of  the  bit,  to  five 
and  one-quarter  inches.  That  expert  horseman,  Mr. 
Thomas  Hitchcock,  hunts  nearly  all  of  his  horses  with 
extremely  long  cheeks.  However,  owing  to  its  severity, 
this  should  never  be  attempted  except  by  an  experi- 
enced horseman. 

For  horses  with  excessively  light  mouths,  or  those 
horses  unaccustomed  to  a  double  bridle,  a  Tom  Thumb 
bit  is  very  efficient.  The  bridle  is  in  all  respects  just 
like  an  ordinary  Weymouth,  but  in  miniature. 

All  curb  bits  should  be  provided  with  a  "  lip-strap," 
which  is  attached  to  the  Up-strap  eyelets  on  the  curb, 
and  passes  through  the  pendant  ring  on  the  curb-chain. 
The  purpose  of  this  strap  is  threefold:  to  prevent  the 
bit  being  reversed  upside  down  by  the  animal  throw- 
ing its  head;  to  keep  the  curb-chain  from  shifting 
upward  out  of  the  chin  groove  and  pressing  on  the 
sharp  edges  of  the  jaw;  and  to  make  it  impossible 
for  a  tricky  horse  to  catch  the  bit  with  his  lower  lip. 

Curb-chains,  which  serve  the  purpose  of  bringing 
part  of  the  pressure  exerted  on  the  reins,  to  bear  on  the 
groove  in  the  lower  chin,  are  necessary  on  all  double 

*  The  loose  rings  at  the  bottom  of  the  cheek  should  be  made  suffi- 
ciently large  to  prevent  the  martingale  rings  going  over  and  catching 
on  them. 


SADDLES  AND  BRIDLES  223 

bridles,  for  without  it,  the  leverage  of  the  bit  is  lost.* 
The  links  of  the  curb-chain  should  be  large,  smooth, 
and  flat,  and  about  one-quarter  inch  in  width,  so  that 
it  will  not  hurt  a  horse's  skin  as  a  thin  one  might.  The 
more  numerous  the  links  the  smoother  the  curb  will 
lie,  and  will  consequently  be  less  severe  on  the  mouth 
than  a  more  open,  or  twisted  chain.  The  chain  should 
never  be  so  tight  as  to  gall  or  bruise  the  horse,  for  this 
will  cause  him  to  throw  his  head  about  and  pull,  nor 
should  it  be  so  loose  as  to  slip  over  his  chin. 

The  simplest  form  of  double  bridle  is  the  one  with  a 
plain  or  jointed  bridoon,  in  conjunction  with  a  Wey- 
mouth bit  having  a  straight-bar  mouthpiece,  or  one 
with  a  slight  bend,  such  as  the  Mullen  or  Cambridge 
form  of  port.  This  bridle  often  is  called  the  Ward 
Union  bridle.  Although  I  do  not  go  so  far  as  to  say 
that  if  you  can't  hold  a  horse  in  this  you  will  never 
hold  him  in  any  bridle,  nevertheless  it  serves  all  or- 
dinary purposes. 

The  only  legitimate  way  of  increasing  the  severity 
of  the  bit  is  by  lengthening  the  cheeks,  tightening  the 
curb-chain,  or  by  using  a  twisted  or  gag  snaffle  in  con- 
junction with  it.  Bits  with  very  high-jointed  ports, 
such  as  the  Stanstead  and  Segundo  bits,  although 
useful  in  the  hands  of  the  experienced  on  pullers,  are 
best  left  alone,  f 

The  Pelham  is  a  combination  of  a  bit  and  bridoon 
all  in  one,  and  can  act  as  either,  according  to  the  de- 

*  For  horses  with  very  sensitive  mouths,  the  curb-chain  may  be 
covered  with  a  rubber  tubing  or  leather  guard,  or  the  chain  itself  may 
be  substituted  by  a  leather  strap.  On  the  other  hand,  on  pullers,  the 
severity  of  the  chain  may  be  increased  by  roughing  it — untwisting  six 
or  more  links. 

t  Such  bits  as  the  Sawbit  and  the  Mohawk  are  instruments  of  tor- 
ture and  relics  of  the  dark  ages. 


224  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

sire  of  the  rider.  It  consists  of  a  mouthpiece,  a  cheek- 
piece  to  which  are  attached  two  sets  of  rings  for  the 
bit  and  bridoon  reins.  The  Pelham  is  usually  splendid 
for  a  horse  who  does  not  like  the  feel  of  two  bits  in 
his  mouth,  who  will  not  face  a  curb,  or  carries  an  exces- 
sively high  head.  In  using  it,  only  one  set  of  reins 
must  be  drawn  taut  at  a  time,  either  the  bridoon  or 
the  bit.  For  were  both  to  be  felt,  the  mouthpiece  would 
be  drawn  up  too  high  in  the  horse's  mouth  and  be  in 
an  incorrect  position. 

The  Pelham  may  either  have  a  plain  straight  bar 
mouthpiece,  a  curved  half-moon  mouthpiece,  a 
" broken"  or  jointed  mouthpiece,  or  one  with  a  very 
slight  port  like  the  Hartwell  Pelham.  All  of  which 
are  extremely  useful  on  horses  with  very  delicate 
mouths. 

Although,  as  a  general  rule,  severe  bits  are  a  mis- 
take, there  is  one  bit  which  in  the  hand  of  an  ex- 
perienced rider  is  very  effective.  The  French  bridle, 
used  largely  by  Mr.  F.  V.  Gooch,  has  a  bit  with  a 
high  port,  in  which  are  placed  rollers.  These  act  some- 
thing like  a  " mouthing"  bit,  and  cause  the  horse  to 
play  with  them,  thereby  flexing  his  neck  automatically 
and  without  any  pressure  from  the  reins.  It  is  so 
severe,  however,  that  it  should  only  be  used  on  a  per- 
fectly made  hack  by  a  very  finished  rider.  Its  very 
severity  would  prevent  its  being  used  on  a  bad  actor, 
for  scarcely  any  pressure  could  be  applied  without  al- 
most throwing  the  horse.  If  a  martingale  is  used  with 
this  bit,  it  should  be  of  round  instead  of  flat  leather, 
so  as  to  be  in  accordance  with  the  French  style. 

Such  Pelhams  as  the  Stourton,  which  has  a  high  half- 
hinged  port,  or  the  Hanovarian,  with  or  without  rollers, 
are  too  severe  for  all  ordinary  purposes.    As  a  general 


SADDLES  AND  BRIDLES  225 

rule,  the  severer  the  bit  the  more  it  excites  the  horse, 
and  the  less  well  he  goes.  The  Chifney  bit,  invented 
by  the  jockey,  Sam  Chifney,  in  which  the  headstall 
is  attached  to  short  arms  that  revolve  on  the  mouth- 
piece and  are  quite  independent  of  the  bit,  if  properly 
used,  may  be  useful  on  pullers,  but  it  belongs  more  or 
less  in  the  category  of  bits  which  are  interesting  as  a 
study — such  as  the  Gridiron.  Tongue  or  ladder  bits 
have  been  invented  with  varying  degrees  of  success,  to 
prevent  a  horse  lolling  his  tongue  out  over  his  bit.* 

Lieutenant-Colonel  McTaggart  rightly  says:  "It 
is  not  the  bit  that  matters,  it  is  the  riding.  If  we  find 
a  horse  too  big  and  strong  for  us,  or  too  keen  or  too 
fretful,  let  us  admit  it  and  dispose  of  him  to  some  one 
who  may  like  him  better.  But,  for  heaven's  sake,  do 
not  go  on  trying  one  severe  bit  after  another  in  the  hope 
that  by  sheer  cruelty  we  shall  be  able  to  force  him  to 
do  our  will,  or  that  we  shall  be  able  to  alter  his  char- 
acter through  the  agency  of  pain.  If  we  train  our- 
selves, as  well  as  our  horses,  we  shall  find  that  all  these 
various  devices  are  unnecessary,  and  that  the  proper 
place  for  these  wonderful  bits  is  not  in  the  stable  but 
in  the  museum." 

Martingales  are  of  two  general  types:  the  standing 
martingale  and  the  ring  or  running  martingale. f 

The  standing  martingale  may  consist  of  either  a 
long  strap  which  attaches  to  the  nose-band,  or  a  strap 

*  Tying  a  string  over  the  animal's  tongue  is  often  very  effective. 
Some  people  use  burrs  and  leather  disks  in  order  to  prevent  a  horse 
pulhng  only  on  one  side  of  the  bit,  but  even  in  such  cases  this  sort  of 
trouble  can  usually  be  more  effectively  corrected  by  having  the  animal's 
teeth  examined  and  treated  by  a  dentist. 

t  An  Irish  martingale  (called  "spectacles")  is  formed  by  passing  the 
reins  through  two  rings  attached  together  by  a  small  strap.  Although 
it  may  be  useful  in  keeping  a  horse's  neck  straight  it  hampers  the  free 
use  of  the  reins  and  is  therefore  defective  in  its  action. 


226  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

that  is  divided  at  the  end  and  attached  by  billets,  or 
snaps,  to  the  rings  of  the  snaffle  or  bridoon. 

The  first  type  is  the  one  most  frequently  met  with 
in  this  country.  It  is  useful  on  a  hack  in  preventing 
the  horse  from  throwing  up  his  head,  or  star-gazing. 
It  may  be  made  as  short  as  desired,  but  care  must  be 
taken  in  using  it  on  a  horse  unaccustomed  to  it,  for  if 
made  too  tight  at  first,  he  may  throw  himself  over 
backward  on  finding  himself  restrained. 

Geoffrey  Brooke,  the  high  priest  of  the  English  show 
ring,  and  most  of  the  French  and  Belgian  officers  who 
make  such  splendid  performances,  as  well  as  Mr. 
Thomas  Hitchcock,  all  use  a  standing  martingale  when 
jumping  their  horses,  but  it  is  not  a  practice  to  be 
recommended,  unless  the  rider  has  exceptionally  fine 
hands  and  the  horse  is  quite  familiar  with  its  use. 

The  form  of  standing  martingale  known  as  the  Chesh- 
ire, which  attaches  to  the  rings  of  the  snaffle,  or  bridoon, 
is  seldom,  if  ever,  used  over  here,  but  is  often  encoun- 
tered in  England  and  Ireland.  Although  far  more  severe 
than  the  other  kind,  it  is  likewise  far  more  effective, 
and  not  only  forces,  but  teaches,  a  horse  to  flex  his  neck 
and  hold  his  head  in  place.  Whereas  a  martingale  on 
the  nose-band  merely  compels  a  horse  to  bring  his  head 
down,  this  kind  of  martingale  punishes  a  horse  in 
the  mouth  every  time  he  raises  his  head  beyond  a  cer- 
tain limit,  and  rewards  him  by  a  cessation  of  pain 
whenever  he  flexes,  eventually  teaching  him  what  is 
expected  of  him.  Sometimes  after  a  short  tuition  with 
this  form  of  standing  martingale,  it  can  be  dispensed 
with  altogether.  When  sufficiently  long  to  enable  a 
horse  to  hold  his  head  in  a  natural  position  (or  a  little 
higher),  it  is  quite  safe  to  be  used  on  a  jumper  by  a 
person  with  good  hands.    It  is  not  a  martingale,  how- 


SADDLES   AND   BRIDLES  227 

ever,  that  one  would  advise  using  for  hunting,  inas- 
much as,  should  a  horse  put  his  foot  in  a  hole,  or 
make  a  bad  mistake,  he  might  not  have  sufficient  free- 
dom of  head  in  order  to  save  himself  from  a  fall. 

In  a  running,  or  ring  martingale,  the  two  end  straps 
are  furnished  with  rings,  through  which  the  reins  pass. 
The  chief  use  of  the  running  martingale  is  to  keep  the 
horse's  neck  straight,  to  retain  the  reins  in  their  proper 
place,  and  to  assist  the  rider  in  having  more  control 
over  the  animal.  When  properly  adjusted  and  of 
sufficient  length,*  it  is  the  safest  form  of  martingale 
to  use  jumping  or  hunting.  Although  not  as  restric- 
tive, or  as  instructive,  as  the  Cheshire  standing  mar- 
tingale, nevertheless,  it  enables  the  rider  to  hold  the 
horse  with  more  ease  than  were  no  martingale  used  at 
all,  and  also  prevents  the  animal  from  throwing  his 
head  up  and  striking  the  rider's  face. 

When  a  running  martingale  is  used  with  a  double 
bridle,  it  should  be  put  on  the  bit  reins,  and  not,  as  one 
so  frequently  sees  over  here,  on  the  bridoon.  A  run- 
ning martingale  on  the  bridoon  deprives  the  rider  of 
having  one  quite  free  and  simple  rein;  moreover  if,  as 
is  usually  the  case,  the  bit  reins  are  held  on  the  inside, 
then  having  the  martingale  on  the  bridoon  reins  will 
result  in  these  being  pulled  across  the  bit  reins,  giving 
an  awkward  feeling  to  both  reins  and  an  untidy  ap- 
pearance. Furthermore,  it  must  not  be  forgotten, 
that  the  action  of  the  bit  is  to  bring  the  horse's  head 
down,  and  that  of  the  bridoon  to  bring  it  up ;  inasmuch 
as  the  action  of  the  martingale  is  also  to  keep  a  horse's 
head  down,  it  certainly  seems  illogical  to  put  it  on  the 
bridoon  rein. 

*  A  safe  length  for  any  kind  of  martingale  used  on  a  jumper  is  that 
which  allows  it  to  reach  the  horse's  jowl,  when  his  head  is  held  high  up. 


228  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

As  already  stated,  the  bottom  rings  of  the  bit  should 
be  large  enough  to  prevent  the  rings  of  the  martin- 
gale from  slipping  over  them  and  catching,*  or  failing 
this,  the  rings  f  of  the  martingale  should  be  made 
sufficiently  small  enough  to  avoid  this  danger.  Small 
round  or  oblong  slits  of  leather,  called  "stops/'  maybe 
slipped  onto  the  reins  for  this  same  purpose,  but  they 
are  not  smart-looking  and  it  is,  therefore,  preferable 
to  have  the  rings  made  the  proper  size.  Of  course, 
one  is  obliged  to  use  stops  when  a  bridle  with  buckled 
reins  is  employed.  The  latter  should  therefore  be 
avoided  for  this  reason  if  for  no  other 4 

All  martingales,  whether  standing  or  running,  should 
be  provided  with  a  small  red  rubber  ring  at  the  junc- 
tion of  the  martingale  proper  and  the  neck-piece,  in 
order  to  prevent  the  former  from  slipping  too  far 
through  and  forming  a  loop,  into  which  a  horse  might 
put  his  foot  and  be  thrown. 

Breastplates  consist  of  a  neck-piece  which  is  at- 
tached by  short  loops  to  the  "D's"  on  the  saddle  on 
each  side  of  the  withers.  Their  object  is  to  prevent 
the  saddle  from  slipping  back  when  riding  over  a  hilly 
country,  and  although  their  use  is  entirely  optional, 
they  are  very  useful  on  ladies'  saddles  and  on  horses 
who  are  not  deep  enough  through  the  girth  to  hold 
the  saddle  in  place.  They  may  be  employed  either 
with  or  without  a  martingale,  but  in  any  case  should 

*  Since  going  to  press,  Mr.  William  H.  Maddison  has  drawn  my  at- 
tention to  an  English  bridle  in  which  the  cheek-rings  of  the  bit  are  hung 
perpendicularly  instead  of  horizontally,  so  that  there  is  no  possible 
chance  of  the  martingale  rings  catching. 

f  The  smartest  rings  are  those  made  of  bone. 

%  With  a  buckled  bridle  an  emergency  stop  may  be  made  by  pulling 
out  from  its  keeper  the  billet  strap  of  the  buckle.  A  standing  martin- 
gale may  also  be  improvised  from  a  running  martingale  by  buckling 
the  rings  of  the  latter  through  the  rein  billets  of  the  bridoon. 


SADDLES  AND  BRIDLES  229 

always  be  accurately  fitted,  so  that  there  will  be  no 
untidy-looking  strap  ends. 

While  on  the  subject  of  tack  a  few  words  concern- 
ing boots  and  bandages  may  not  come  amiss.  Suffice 
it  to  say,  however,  that  they  are  often  a  necessary 
precaution  on  valuable  horses  when  hunting  or  jump- 
ing them,  or  when  exercising  show  hacks.  Boots  are 
easier  to  put  on  than  bandages  and  afford  quite  as 
much  protection  from  blows,  but  they  do  not  support 
the  tendons  and  ligaments  in  the  way  that  bandages 
do.  They  are  therefore  more  suited  for  hacks  and  polo 
ponies  than  they  are  for  hunters,  whose  tendons  are 
put  to  a  great  strain  in  jumping. 

If  boots  are  used,  an  endless  variety  may  be  tried 
until  one  has  found  a  kind  effective  on  the  horse  in 
question.  If  used  merely  to  prevent  injury  from  in- 
terfering or  brushing,  those  of  brown  leather,  lined 
with  sheepskin,  will  be  found  most  satisfactory.  They 
should  be  so  fitted  that  they  will  remain  in  place,  but 
should  never  be  buckled  so  tightly  that  circulation  will 
be  stopped. 

When  bandages  are  used  for  hunting  they  should 
be  of  blue  kersey,  and  carefully  put  on,  so  as  not  to 
hurt  the  horse's  back  tendons.*  Bandaging  for  hunting 
should  only  be  attempted  by  an  expert  groom,  for 
boots  are  infinitely  preferable  to  badly  put  on  bandages, 
which  come  undone  and  trip  the  horse  up. 

*  Using  safety  pins  (as  is  done  on  race- tracks)  instead  of  tapes  is 
advisable,  for  with  these  there  is  less  danger  of  injuring  the  animal's 
tendons. 


CHAPTER  XVI 

DRESS 

"The  queer  things  we  say, 
And  the  queer  things  we  do 
Are  English,  you  know, 
Quite  English,  you  know." 

—Old  Song. 

In  giving  rather  an  iron-clad  list  of  what  is  proper 
in  the  way  of  riding  clothes,  I  may  possibly  be  laying 
myself  open  to  the  accusation  of  being  a  slave  to  fash- 
ion. On  the  contrary,  both  in  theory  and  in  practice, 
I  am  much  more  apt  altogether  to  disregard  "the 
thing,"  and  in  dress,  as  well  as  in  everything  else,  am 
inclined  to  be  an  excellent  Episcopalian,  inasmuch  as 
I  have  always  left  undone  those  things  which  I  ought 
to  have  done  and  have  done  those  things  which  I  ought 
not  to  have  done!  Herbert  Spencer  says,  originality 
of  nature  is  sure  to  show  itself  in  more  ways  than  one, 
and  the  worth-while  people  who  divert  from  the  beaten 
track  in  large  things,  frequently  do  so  in  the  small 
things — clothes  for  example. 

One  need  not,  however,  be  a  slave  to  any  fashion 
which  is  neither  practical  nor  useful,  but  one  should 
cling  to  those  styles  which  ar  both  beautiful  and  suit- 
able and  have,  moreover,  been  hallowed  by  tradition. 
These  should  not  be  changed  for  any  passing  fad  of 
the  day ! 

It  is  for  this  reason,  I  suppose,  that  I  am  so  adverse 
to  departing  from  the  old  and  wisely  established  fash- 
ions in  riding  clothes;  for  those  particularly  adapted 
to  hunting,  polo,  and  coaching  have  traditions  cling- 

230 


DRESS  231 

ing  to  them  full  of  the  memory  of  days  when  the  horse 
indeed  was  king. 

If  a  woman  wishes  to  express  originality  in  her  rid- 
ing things  let  her,  if  she  has  courage  enough,  go  for 
inspiration  to  the  old  sporting  prints  of  long  ago  rather 
than  rely  on  the  idiotic  ideas  of  modern  tailors,  who 
usually  do  not  know  a  horse  from  a  cow !  If  you  are 
neither  courageous  nor  artistic  enough  to  copy  the 
quaint  ladies  and  gentlemen  in  the  old  prints — and 
in  the  case  of  the  former  it  would,  I  grant,  be  well- 
nigh  impossible,  since  modern  saddles  and  modes  of 
riding  for  women  have  altered  so  greatly — it  is  best 
to  abide  by  the  traditional  riding  clothes  that  have 
been  proven  to  be  serviceable  by  generations  of  rid- 
ing men  and  women. 

For  these  models  of  sporting  attire  we  must,  of  neces- 
sity, turn  to  the  English,  who  for  centuries  have  ex- 
celled in  this  line  and  have  produced  tailors  who,  ac- 
cordingly, have  evolved  clothes  most  suited  to  riding. 
Some  Americans,  usually  of  the  provincial  type,  think 
that  it  is  unpatriotic  and  affected  to  copy  English 
styles;  I  fail,  however,  to  see  why  it  is  any  more  un- 
patriotic or  affected  to  go  to  England  for  our  sporting 
models  than  it  is  to  go  to  Paris  for  our  evening  dresses 
and  lingeries.  Why  should  we  be  willing  to  admit 
that  the  Parisian  woman  has  a  "chic"  about  her,  which 
distinguishes  her  from  all  other  women  in  the  world, 
and  yet  be  so  reluctant  to  admit  that  the  English 
woman,  on  a  horse,  is  perfection  itself. 

It  is  not  so  very  astonishing  that  American  men 
seem  to  think  that  "any  old  thing"  will  do  for  riding, 
for  they  are,  in  any  case,  apt  to  be  rather  negligently 
dressed,  and  inclined  to  think  that  a  smartly  turned 
out  man  is  a  bit  "dudish."    It  is  a  never-ending  mys- 


232  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

tery  to  me,  however,  that  the  American  woman  who, 
as  a  rule,  prides  herself  on  being  the  most  elaborately 
and  beautifully  gowned  woman  in  the  world,  should 
be  willing  to  appear  out  riding,  clad  in  clothes  that 
look  as  if  they  had  been  thrown  on  with  a  pitchfork ! 

Anything  seems  to  do  for  riding.  Ill-fitting  habits, 
boots  that  bulge  at  the  top  and  look  as  if  they  could 
contain  the  week's  laundry,  and  hats  of  all  kinds,  are 
all  means  by  which  an  otherwise  pretty  woman  turns 
herself  into  a  frightful-looking  guy.  The  things  one 
sees  in  Central  Park,  in  the  way  of  riding  clothes,  are 
a  sight  for  the  gods.  Even  in  the  hunting  field  one 
sees  caps,  soft  hats,  queer-colored  ties,  and  sloppy  ill- 
fitting  coats,  and  at  those  American  hunts,  which  per- 
haps represent  more  aggregate  wealth  than  any  other 
in  the  world,  the  men  and  women,  although  as  well 
mounted  as  any  field  in  England,  spoil  the  general 
effect  by  their  untidy  appearance.  In  their  rat-catcher 
clothes  they  are  rarely  as  well  turned  out  as  a  smart 
groom.  Excessive  prinking  and  fussing  over  one's 
clothes  is,  of  course,  as  abhorrent  as  the  vanity  that 
prompts  it,  but  nevertheless  it  remains  a  fact  that 
one  can  ride  just  as  hard  and  just  as  straight  if  one  is 
well  turned  out,  as  if  one  looks  like  a  frump.  Some 
of  the  hardest  and  best  riders  I  know  are  immaculate 
as  to  their  clothes,  and  most  particular  as  to  their 
tack. 

The  men  of  olden  days,  with  their  plum-colored  coats 
and  ruffles,  satin  knickerbockers,  and  silk  stockings, 
were  not  one  whit  less  manly  or  brave  than  the  men 
of  the  present  day  in  their  monotonous  black-and- 
white  sameness.  I,  for  one,  would  think  it  a  vast  im- 
provement were  men  to  return — in  the  evening  at 
least — to  the  picturesque  costumes  of  old,  so  that  a 


DRESS  233 

ballroom  might  once  more  be  the  thing  of  beauty  that 
it  is  nowadays  only  when  a  costume  ball  is  in  swing. 
But  modern  life,  with  its  hustle  and  bustle,  has  robbed 
us  of  much  of  the  picturesque  side  of  life,  and  the  hunt- 
ing field  is  practically  the  only  place  left  to  us  in  which 
to  glimpse  a  bit  of  the  picturesqueness  of  olden  times. 
There  are  few  prettier  sights  in  the  world  than  a  "pack 
in  full  cry"  and  a  field  of  riders  dotting  the  country 
with  flashes  of  scarlet  and  black.  Indeed,  the  farmers 
over  whose  land  the  field  is  privileged  to  pass  are  much 
more  apt  to  get  up  an  enthusiasm  for  the  sport  if  they 
are,  as  in  England,  in  some  measure  rewarded  for  the 
damage  done  to  their  crops  by  the  sight  of  a  field  in 
scarlet. 

But  whether  it  be  in  the  hunting  field,  or  merely 
in  the  park,  we  should  consider  it  our  duty  to  ourselves 
and  to  our  neighbor  to  be  well  turned  out;  beauty  is 
an  end  in  itself. 

A  smartly  cut,  well-fitting  riding-habit  is  bound  to 
be  more  or  less  expensive,  but  I  would  not  advise  any 
one  to  attempt  to  economize  by  getting  cheap  material, 
going  to  an  inferior  tailor,  or  buying  "a  ready-made" 
at  some  department  store.  In  the  end  a  good  habit 
will  pay,  for  it  will,  with  a  moderate  amount  of  care, 
last  for  some  time,  and  when  it  wears  out  at  the  knee 
can  be  neatly  patched  with  a  piece  of  buckskin.* 

The  best  material  for  a  winter  habit  is  a  heavy  Mel- 
ton cloth.  Tailors  are  not  apt  to  recommend  it,  how- 
ever, not  only  because  it  wears  so  well  that  they  realize 
it  will  be  a  long  time  before  the  purchaser  will  need  a 
new  habit,  but  also  because  it  is  a  very  hard,  stiff  tex- 

*  As  skirts  get  much  more  wear  than  coats,  I  would  advise  getting 
two  skirts  to  each  coat,  and  wearing  them  alternately,  so  that  both 
skirts  maintain  the  same  degree  of  newness  as  the  coat. 


v 


234  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

ture  to  work,  and  must  be  well  cut  and  fitted  to  look 
properly.  No  amount  of  pulling  or  stretching  will 
ever  persuade  it  to  assume  a  shape  that  it  did  not 
have  originally. 

The  color  of  a  habit  is,  of  course,  largely  a  matter 
of  taste,  but  a  black  ground  with  a  touch  of  "pepper 
and  salt,"  or  what  is  termed  Oxford  or  regulation  Mel- 
ton mixture,  is  preferable.  Dark  blue,  brown,  and  green 
habits  are  not  as  smart  as  melton  mixture,  while  black 
broadcloth  has  too  " dressy"  a  look  to  be  workman- 
like. Cheviots,  worsteds,  and  whipcords  do  very  well 
for  knocking  about  the  country,  but  should  not  be 
used  for  the  show  ring,  park,  or  for  hunting. 

For  summer  wear  more  liberty  of  taste  is  permis- 
sible. Habits  of  dark  gray  cloth  are  pretty  for  coun- 
try wear,  or  coats  of  tan  gabardine  or  white  linen 
with  a  skirt  of  small  black-and-white  checked  material. 
Reversing  the  scheme  and  wearing  a  dark  coat  and  a 
white  serge  skirt,  although  smart,  is  not  serviceable, 
as  the  white  soils  so  quickly.  Washable  cloths  and 
natural  pongees,  even  when  shrunk  before  being  made 
up,  are  very  unsatisfactory  as  they  seldom  retain  their 
shape. 

The  skirt,  if  of  Melton,  should  be  of  treble  weight, 
and  in  any  case  several  degrees  heavier  than  the  ma- 
terial used  for  the  coat.  To  hang  well,  a  coat  material 
must  be  of  a  pliable  stuff,  but  a  skirt  cloth  must  be 
very  heavy  in  order  that  it  present  a  straight  line  from 
knee  to  toe.  A  skirt  of  a  light  material  will  not  only 
blow  like  a  balloon  in  every  wind,  but  will  allow  the 
right  toe  to  appear  out  from  under  its  fold,  a  very  ugly 
fault.  Even  for  summer  wear  the  skirt  should  be  heavy, 
and  if  a  light  material  is  chosen  for  the  coat,  it  should 
be  lined  or  stiffened  when  used  in  making  up  the  skirt. 


DRESS  235 

Heat  in  riding  is  not  felt  below  the  waist,  and  the  slight 
additional  weight  of  cloth  in  the  skirt  will  not  in  any 
way  inconvenience  the  rider.  Unfortunately  American 
tailors,  although  able  to  make  excellent  riding  coats, 
fail  utterly  to  make  a  good  skirt,  because  they  insist 
on  using  too  light  a  material. 

Both  for  a  winter  or  a  summer  habit,  the  apron  skirt 
is  the  only  safe  kind  to  use,  as  it  practically  eliminates 
all  danger  of  the  material  catching  on  the  pommel 
in  case  of  an  accident,  and  dragging  the  rider.  If  this 
sort  of  skirt  is  quickly  fastened  after  dismounting,  it 
is  no  more  immodest — if  as  much  so — as  the  average 
modern  bathing  suit — or  evening  gown. 

A  well-cut  skirt  should  hang,  when  in  the  saddle,  in 
an  absolutely  straight  line  from  the  knee  to  the  toe 
(see  illustrations  facing  pages  36  and  120),  and  it  should 
be  only  just  long  enough  to  show  a  tiny  bit  of  the  rid- 
er's left  foot  and  stirrup-iron. 

If  a  habit  is  well  made  it  should  have  no  unnecessary 
elastics,  loops,  or  buttons — an  elastic  to  go  over  the 
right  foot  to  keep  the  skirt  down,  and  a  button  to  hold 
back  the  extra  flap  that  is  necessary  in  order  to  close 
the  skirt  when  walking,  is  all  that  is  needed.  There 
is  absolutely  no  need,  in  a  properly  cut  skirt,  for  but- 
tons at  the  knee  or  elastics  to  place  on  the  left  foot. 

In  fitting  a  skirt,  care  should  be  taken  to  see  that 
the  cloth  lies  smoothly  over  the  knee,  so  that  it  will 
not  be  necessary  to  drag  it  constantly  into  shape.  If 
it  is  long  enough  from  the  hip  to  the  knee,  it  will  do 
this  naturally,  and  it  is  safer  to  have  the  skirt  a  little 
on  the  long  side  in  this  respect,  for  if  the  knee  is  fitted 
too  snugly,  the  skirt  will  ride  out  of  place  when  in  mo- 
tion. 

Another  important  precaution  to  take,  when  fitting 


236  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

a  habit,  is  to  see  that  the  stirrup  leather  is  placed  at 
the  length  at  which  the  rider  usually  has  it,  otherwise 
it  will  be  impossible  to  ascertain  accurately  at  what 
length  the  skirt  should  be.  The  rider  must  sit  naturally 
in  the  tailor's  saddle,  exactly  as  she  would  when  riding, 
and  must  not  draw  her  right  foot  back  in  a  " model" 
position.  If  she  does  this,  the  skirt  will  not  be  wide 
enough  to  cover  her  foot  when  it  is  extended  in  its 
natural  position.  Some  English  ladies  advise  using 
their  own  saddles  for  fittings,  but  I  do  not  think  this 
absolutely  necessary,  for  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  sad- 
dles differ  vastly  in  shape  and  size,  a  good  habit  should 
sit  well  on  any  kind  of  saddle.  It  would  be  well,  how- 
ever, to  observe  the  pommels  of  the  habit-maker's  sad- 
dle; as  a  general  rule  saddles  in  these  establishments 
are  fitted  with  low-headed  pommels,  as  this  kind  gives 
the  least  trouble  in  " poking  up"  under  the  habit.  If 
such  proves  to  be  the  case,  the  fitter's  attention  should 
be  drawn  to  it,  and  an  allowance  made  for  the  differ- 
ence in  the  height  of  the  pommels. 

Every  year  new  and  horrible-looking  coat  models 
appear,  designed  by  some  tailor  who  has  never  in  his 
life  been  near  a  horse.  But  the  real  horsewoman  is 
not  influenced  by  changes  of  so-called  fashions  of  the 
day,  and,  if  sensible,  she  retains  the  same  style  year 
in  and  year  out  with  but  little  alteration. 

The  accompanying  sketches  (see  Figs.  1  and  2)  show 
a  type  of  coat  which  will  prove  very  serviceable  both 
for  hacking  and  hunting.  If  used  for  the  former,  the 
material  of  which  it  is  made  may  be  lighter  and  the 
skirt  of  the  coat  should  be  a  few  inches  shorter,  but  in 
all  other  respects  the  difference  is  so  slight  as  to  be 
negligible. 

It  will  be  observed  that  the  model  has  no  pockets, 


Figs.  1  and  2  Hunting  or  Hacking  Coat 
Eigs.  3,  4,  and  5  Pytchley  Coat 

P.  Nardi — Habit  Maker 


238  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

that  it  has  but  one  vent  or  slit  up  the  back,  and 
is  single-breasted  with  four  buttons  in  front,  so  that 
it  buttons  up  very  high.  This  is  far  smarter  than  show- 
ing an  acre  of  white  shirt.  The  collar  should  be  of 
"self"  material  and  never  of  velvet  (unless  in  a  hunt 
livery),  and  it  should  be  made  so  that  it  can  be  turned 
up  around  the  neck  and  buttoned  over  as  a  protection 
against  rainy  weather  (the  buttons  may  be  concealed 
on  the  under  side).  The  cuffs  should  not  be  "false" 
but  it  should  be  possible  to  turn  them  down  over  the 
wrists,  and,  to  be  really  correct,  the  buttonholes  on 
the  cuffs  must  also  be  genuine  and  not  "faked." 

It  is  usually  advisable  to  have  the  coat  large  enough 
to  permit  of  a  sleeveless  vest  being  worn  underneath. 
Only  the  edge  of  the  vest  shows  along  the  opening, 
which  gives  a  smart  appearance  and  also  helps  to 
make  the  coat  fit  better.  A  false  vest  or  piping  edge 
is  very  incorrect,  as  it  deceives  no  one,  and  is  in  the 
same  class  as  a  "dickey." 

The  coat,  if  used  as  a  hunt  livery,  should  have  a 
velvet  collar  of  the  hunt  colors  and  the  hunt  buttons. 
The  velvet  collar  should  extend  only  as  far  as  the  slit 
in  the  collar,  and  the  buttons  should  be  of  black  bone 
into  which  the  hunt  letters  or  insignia  are  cut,  and 
show  up  in  the  natural  bone  color.  The  two  buttons 
on  the  rear  of  the  coat  should  be  of  the  same  size  as 
those  in  front,  but  those  on  the  sleeves  should  be  con- 
siderably smaller.* 

If  an  extra  heavy  coat  is  desired,  I  can  recommend 
nothing  better  than  to  have  it  made  in  heavy  Irish 
frieze  which,  on  account  of  its  long  hairy  surface,  sheds 
rain  well.     The  coat  should  be  interlined  with  black 

*  The  hunt  buttons  and  collar  are  not  permitted  to  ladies  in  every 
hunt,  and  permission  to  wear  them  must  be  obtained  from  the  M.  F.  H. 


DRESS  239 

and  white,  or  red  and  white  flannel,  and  it  should,  of 
course,  be  made  large  enough  to  permit  of  one  woolly- 
being  worn  underneath. 

The  other  sketch  (see  Figs.  3,  4,  and  5)  is  what  is 
called  a  Pytchley,  and  is  used  a  great  deal  by  hunting 
men  and  women  in  England.  It  makes  the  smartest 
sort  of  hunt  livery,  but,  of  course,  only  to  be  used  as 
a  member's  coat,  and  never  when  acting  or  represent- 
ing Master,  huntsmen,  or  whips  in  a  team. 

The  Pytchley  was  first  introduced  in  this  country 
by  Mr.  Harry  Page.  Although,  strictly  speaking,  a 
hunting  coat,  common  usuage  in  this  country  has  ren- 
dered it  acceptable  for  hacking  and  showing  as  well. 
It  first  attracted  the  attention  of  the  general  riding 
public  in  1912  at  Madison  Square  Garden,  when  Miss 
Hopeton  W.  Atterbury  (Mrs.  William  Quaid)  and  I 
appeared  in  them  in  an  appointment  class.  At  that 
time  it  was  dubbed  the  Nardi  coat,  because  the  well- 
known  habit-maker  of  that  name,  copying  a  model 
given  to  him,  had  made  them.  Unfortunately,  how- 
ever, the  coat  has  now  been  copied  wholesale  and 
turned  out  by  every  Tom,  Dick,  and  the  devil  of  a 
tailor  who  hasn't  the  remotest  idea  of  how  it  should 
be  cut.  If  not  well  fitted  and  well  cut  it  is  an  abomi- 
nation. 

To  begin  with,  it  should  only  be  worn  by  a  woman 
with  a  slight  figure  and  a  long  waist;  a  stout  short- 
waisted  woman  looks  like  an  apple-dumpling  in  it. 
Secondly,  it  is  strictly  a  dress  habit,  and  should  never 
be  worn  before  12  a.  m.,  or  without  a  top  hat.  It  should 
only  be  made  of  black  or  Oxford  mixture,  Melton 
cloth,  and  never  in  dark  brown,  blue,  or  green.  It 
should  never  be  worn  with  a  loud-colored  vest,  or  any 
other  shaped  vest  than  that  in  the  illustration,  which 


240  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

is  made  of  "moleskin,"  white  in  color  for  hacking  and 
buff  (not  yellow)  for  hunting,  and  the  ends  are  rounded 
and  not  pointed  as  is  so  frequently  seen. 

The  tails  of  the  Pytchley  coat  should  not  be  too 
long,  and  the  front  edge  of  the  coat  where  it  ends  at 
the  vest,  should  be  rounded  and  not  angular.  Illustra- 
tion facing  page  132,  and  illustration  facing  page  120, 
show  a  Pytchley  on  a  man  and  a  woman,  respectively. 

The  secret  of  a  well-fitting  Pytchley,  or,  for  that 
matter,  any  riding  coat,  is  that  it  should  fit  like  the 
paper  on  the  wall  over  the  shoulders  and  back,  as  far 
down  as  the  last  rib;  here  it  should  be  "sprung"  so 
that  it  does  not  ride  up  and  down.  When  fitting  the 
coat  it  is  best  to  move  the  arms  forward,  for  if  when 
doing  so  wrinkles  are  present,  it  is  a  sign  that  the  coat 
is  not  properly  sprung. 

If  a  "high-water"  mark  appears  across  the  back 
where  the  corset  ends,  the  stays  are  either  too  high, 
or  too  loose,  the  rider  too  round-shouldered,  or  the 
coat  too  tight.  Any  one  of  these  faults  are  easy  to 
remedy.  Great  care  must  be  taken  that  the  collar 
fits  nicely  and  does  not  gap  open  and  away  from  the 
neck,  which  is  a  sign  that  it  needs  "pinching."  Most 
tailors  begin  pulling  the  coat  up  and  down  when  it 
does  not  fit,  and  manage  to  make  the  faults  disappear 
by  judicious  yanking  about,  but  I  always  tell  my  tailors 
that,  as  I  won't  have  them  constantly  beside  me  to  put 
the  coat  into  shape  when  I  am  riding,  it  must  be  made 
to  fit  without  the  pulling.  Generally  when  the  coat 
gaps  at  the  collar  or  fits  badly  in  the  back,  it  requires 
"lifting"  on  the  shoulders.  Don't  let  the  tailor  alter 
it  elsewhere,  just  tell  him  to  lift  it  on  the  shoulders, 
and  see  for  yourself  how  much  better  it  will  look.  Most 
riding  coats  are  made  too  long-waisted;  lifting  remedies 


DRESS  241 

this  and  brings  the  waist-line  into  proper  position  and 
throws  the  whole  coat  into  better  line.  The  sleeves 
should  be  put  into  the  body  of  the  coat,  as  a  man's 
sleeves,  without  any  puffiness. 

If  a  coat  looks  well  on  the  saddle,  don't  let  your 
tailor  make  any  alteration  on  it  when  you  step  to  the 
ground.  If  it  is  to  fit  well  when  you  are  on  a  horse,  it 
will  be  bound  to  " bulge"  a  little  in  the  front  when 
you  are  standing,  and  if  this  is  taken  in  to  fit  when  you 
are  on  your  feet,  it  will  be  sure  to  be  too  tight  at  that 
point  when  you  ride.  Most  tailors  and  many  ladies 
forget  that  they  are  fitting  a  riding  coat,  and  seem  to 
prefer  to  look  well  on  foot  rather  than  on  horseback. 

The  lining  of  a  riding  coat  should  be  of  white  or  dark 
colored  silk,  and  it  should  never  be  loud  in  appearance; 
the  coat  tails  should  be  lined  at  their  tips  with  rubber, 
so  as  to  protect  them  from  the  sweat  of  the  horse's 
back. 

To  secure  a  perfect  fit  in  a  riding  coat  requires  more 
than  just  one  or  two  fittings,  and  it  should  be  patiently 
tried  on  again  and  again  until  it  is  just  right.  When 
the  coat  is  worn  for  the  first  time  (and  preferably 
before  the  bill  is  paid),  it  would  be  well  for  some  friend 
to  be  asked  to  criticise  the  coat  and  note  if  there  are 
wrinkles  or  bulges,  or  if  there  is  anything  amiss  with 
the  fit  when  the  rider  trots,  canters,  or  gallops.  In 
a  perfect  coat,  the  back  should  present  an  unwrinkled 
appearance,  no  matter  at  what  gait  the  rider  is  travel- 
ling. 

Women's  breeches  are  usually  made  of  Bedford 
cord  or  of  whipcord,  of  the  same  shade  as  the  habit 
but  of  a  lighter-weight  material.  Doeskin  leather 
breeches,  although  expensive,  wear  very  well  and  are 
delightfully  soft  and  pliable  (providing,  of  course,  that 


242  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

they  are  properly  taken  care  of,  for  if  not,  they  soon 
become  as  stiff  as  boards) .  If  doeskin  is  used,  it  should 
be  of  dark  reddish  or  gray  brown;  white  or  very  light 
colored  breeches  should  never  be  worn  by  any  woman 
who  wishes  to  present  a  modest  appearance  when 
mounting  or  dismounting  from  her  horse.  Most 
women's  breeches  made  in  this  country  are  an  abomi- 
nation, because  they  are  usually  fitted,  even  at  the 
best  tailor's,  by  some  woman  dressmaker,  who  rarely 
knows  anything  about  the  proper  fit  of  breeches.  Al- 
though I  strongly  disapprove  of  women  going  to  men's 
tailors  for  their  breeches,  I  see  no  serious  objection  to 
the  fitter  who  adjusts  the  riding  skirt  also  inspecting 
the  fit  of  the  breeches. 

A  well-fitting  pair  of  breeches  should  be  almost  ex- 
actly like  those  worn  by  a  man;  the  only  difference 
being  that  breeches  worn  on  a  side-saddle  should  fit 
the  thigh  more  snugly  so  as  not  to  make  the  skirt  bulge 
on  the  sides.  Whatever  fulness  there  is,  should  only 
begin  about  ten  inches  above  the  knee;  at  the  knee 
itself  they  should  fit  like  a  glove  to  prevent  rubbing. 
They  should  be  made  in  such  a  manner  that  when 
drawn  on  the  openings  are  in  the  proper  place.  If 
they  require  to  be  twisted  around,  they  will,  unless 
made  uncomfortably  tight,  soon  work  back  into  their 
old  place  and  be  extremely  untidy  looking.* 

On  a  man's  breeches,  the  buttons  should  come  a 
little  to  the  inside  of  the  shin-bone,  but  as  the  breeches 
of  a  woman  on  a  side-saddle  scarcely  ever  show,  for  com- 
fort's sake  the  buttons  may  be  placed  on  the  shin-bone, 
a  trifle  to  the  outside  on  the  left  leg,  and  to  the  inside 
on  the  right  leg,  so  as  to  prevent  any  possible  rubbing 

*  All  breeches  should  be  reinforced  or  "  strapped  "  inside  the  knees 
with  patches  of  buckskin. 


DRESS  243 

against  the  saddle.  Even  a  still  better  plan  is  to  have 
the  breeches  lace  up  over  the  shin-bone  on  the  inside. 

I  am  a  firm  believer  in  a  woman  being  almost  as 
particular  about  her  breeches  as  a  man,  but  as  they 
are  not  conspicuous,  I  think  it  extremely  foolish  ever 
to  sacrifice  comfort  in  this  garment  for  the  sake  of 
looks.  A  woman's  position  in  the  saddle  is  so  different 
from  a  man's,  and  requires  so  much  more  freedom  at 
the  joints,  that  I  think  it  is  senseless  to  ape  him.  A 
seat  to  be  graceful  must  also  be  comfortable;  once 
comfortable  underneath,  one  can  be  as  smart  and  trim 
as  one  likes  on  top.  For  this  reason  I  would  caution 
a  woman  to  see  that  her  breeches,  although  neat  enough 
to  use,  if  desired,  on  a  cross-saddle,  do  not  cramp  her. 

Four  buttons  are  supposed  to  be  the  correct  number 
to  appear  above  the  boot  top,  but  as  a  woman's  boots 
should  be  slightly  shorter  than  those  used  by  a  man, 
there  should  be  extensions  on  her  breeches,  which  but- 
ton or  lace  half-way  down  the  leg  under  the  boot. 
These  not  only  keep  the  leg  warm  in  the  winter,  but 
also  prevent  the  breeches  slipping  out  over  the  top 
of  the  boot  in  an  untidy  fashion.  The  extensions,  of 
course,  should  not  begin  so  high  up  that  they  are  likely 
to  show  above  the  boot  line,  nor  should  they  be  so 
loose  as  to  ride  up  and  down  and  chafe  the  leg. 

There  is  but  one  style  of  boot,  called  the  "  butcher 
boot,"  which  is  correct  for  women's  wear,  and  this 
may  be  made  either  in  calf,  patent  leather,  or  brown 
leather.  "Top"  boots,  or  soft  legged  boots,  are  in- 
correct for  side-saddle  use.  For  hacking,  boots  should 
be  made  of  patent  leather,  or  with  a  calf  foot  and  a 
patent-leather  leg.  For  hunting,  a  calf  boot  h  the 
correct  thing. 

All  boots  should  be  supplied  with  boot  garters,  i.  e.t 


244  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

thin  leather  straps,  the  same  color  as  the  boot,  which 
pass  through  a  loop  in  the  latter  and  are  buckled  in 
front  just  above  the  top  of  the  boot. 

For  summer  wear  tan  leather  butcher  boots  are 
most  useful.  They  should  be  well-fitting  and  stained 
(if  new)  a  dark  shade  of  tan.  For  formal  wear,  with 
a  white  skirt  at  summer  shows,  black  patent-leather 
boots,  though  hot,  are  smartest.  But  for  roughing  it 
in  the  country,  shoes  with  worsted  puttees,  tan  gaiters, 
or  box-cloth  gaiters,  which  button  on  the  side  like  a 
man's,  are  permissible.  They  are  not  as  smart,  how- 
ever, and  no  cooler  or  more  comfortable  than  field 
boots,  which  lace  up  to  the  ankle.  The  latter  have 
the  advantage  of  coming  in  handy  for  long  tramps 
on  foot,  or  for  shooting  parties. 

As  in  the  case  of  breeches,  women  should  not  at- 
tempt to  copy  men  too  closely  in  the  fit  or  exact  shape 
of  their  boots.  Fashion  dictates  that  a  woman's  boots 
should  be  as  high  as  a  man's,  but  "  fashion,"  and  boot- 
makers in  general,  forget  that  a  woman's  position  in 
a  side-saddle  is  very  different  from  a  man's,  and  that 
high  boots  are  extremely  uncomfortable  for  her.  The 
hard  leather  of  a  high  boot  not  only  presses  disagree- 
ably against  the  breeches  buttons,  but  also  is  very 
apt,  on  the  left  leg,  to  catch  underneath  the  little  leather 
flap  which  covers  the  safety-bar  of  the  saddle,  and  on 
the  right  leg  to  rub  against  the  pommel.  For  this 
reason  it  is  best  always  to  order  boots  cut  at  least 
two  inches  lower  than  the  regulation  height,  which  is 
scarcely  noticeable  and  much  more  comfortable.*  In 
conversing  on  the  subject  with  various  women,  I  have 

*  Some  women,  finding  that  a  high  boot  on  the  left  leg  is  less  objec- 
tionable than  on  the  right,  merely  have  the  right  one  cut  down.  They 
go  on  the  principle  that  as  the  left  leg  is  the  only  one  that  shows  when 
a  woman  is  walking,  the  difference  in  height  will  not  be  noticed.     I 


DRESS  245 

found  that  the  majority  of  them  do  this,  but  are 
rather  ashamed  to  admit  it,  for  fear  that  they  will  be 
accused  of  violating  some  especially  sacred  etiquette  of 
riding  clothes ! 

A  boot  should  fit  snugly  in  the  foot  and  up  the  leg, 
and  there  should  be  no  space  at  the  top  of  it.  Boots 
that  are  too  big  in  the  leg  are  an  abomination,  while 
snug  boots  not  only  are  smart-looking,  but  also  have 
the  advantage  of  being  a  great  protection  to  the  legs 
in  case  of  a  fall.  I  know  from  personal  experience, 
that  when  one  of  my  horses  fell  with  me,  breaking 
my  leg  in  four  places  below  the  knee,  my  surgeon  said 
that  had  it  not  been  for  my  tight  boot,  which  I  re- 
fused to  have  cut  off  until  the  surgeon  arrived,  the 
breaks  might  have  been  worse  than  they  were;  the 
boot  acted  as  a  splint,  and  prevented  the  bones  from 
coming  through  the  skin.  I  always  remember  this 
nowadays,  and  whenever  I  hunt,  or  school  green 
jumpers,  I  am  careful  to  put  on  my  tightest  and  best- 
fitting  boots. 

Mrs.  Hayes  writes  in  The  Horsewoman  that  she 
recommends  loose-fitting  boots,  claiming  that  in  case 
of  an  accident  a  woman's  boot  should  be  loose  enough 
to  come  off  her  foot  should  she  hang  by  the  stirrup, 
but  I  cannot  quite  follow  her  line  of  reasoning.  A 
woman's  safety  in  the  saddle,  depends  not  on  the  rather 
slim  chance  of  her  boot  coming  off,  but  on  the  safety- 
bar  of  her  stirrup,  and  the  very  improbable  advantage 
a  loose  boot  might  give  in  this  direction  is  more  than 
counterbalanced,  not  only  by  the  superior  looks  of  a 
tight  boot,  but  chiefly  by  the  protection  the  latter 
affords  the  leg. 

prefer,  personally,  to  have  both  boots  of  equal  height,  not  only  for  the 
sake  of  symmetry  but  also  because  I  dislike  to  wear  a  high  boot  even 
on  the  left  leg. 


246  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

As  tight  boots  make  the  feet  cold,  hunting-boots 
for  exclusive  winter  use  may  be  made  large  enough  to 
permit  one,  or  two  pair,  of  heavy  woollen  stockings 
to  be  worn  underneath. 

High  heels  on  a  riding-boot  are  absolutely  incor- 
rect, and  the  proper  thing  is  to  have  a  low,  long  heel.* 
This  must  not,  however,  be  overdone  and  allowance 
must  be  made  for  the  fact  that  a  woman  has  a  higher 
arch  than  a  man.  If  the  heel  of  the  boot  is  too  low, 
the  sole  of  the  foot  too  flat,  and  no  arch  is  provided 
for  the  instep,  the  boots  will  be  extremely  uncom- 
fortable for  a  woman  to  walk  in.  Care  should  also 
be  taken  that  the  inside  of  the  heel  of  the  boot  is 
narrow  enough,  or  otherwise  the  boot  will  rub  up  and 
down  and  chafe  the  foot  in  walking. 

New  boots  should  always  be  " broken  in"  before 
one  attempts  to  hunt  or  show  a  horse  in  them,  for 
nothing  will  make  one  ride  so  badly  as  a  pair  of  boots 
and  breeches  that  are  tight  and  new. 

For  ordinary  every-day  wear  in  the  winter,  and  for 
cool  days  in  the  country,  a  plain  black  bowler  (derby) 
is  the  correct  thing.  But  as  there  are  many  shapes 
and  styles  of  bowlers,  care  should  be  taken  to  select 
a  smart  workmanlike  model,  and  I  am  sorry  to  say, 
that  there  are  few  hatters  in  this  country  where  one 
can  rely  on  finding  one.  The  average  American  riding 
hat  is  a  fearful-looking  object,  and  on  the  whole  it  is 
generally  wiser  to  import  one  (and  then  have  a  " block" 
made  from  it  for  future  use),  or  else  endeavor  to  pick 
out  an  English  model  over  here.  Those  from  Messrs. 
Locke,  or  Lincoln  and  Bennett,  are  possibly  the  best. 

Whatever  style  you  select,  be  sure  to  avoid  the  low 

*  The  long  heel  is  supposed  to  catch  on  the  stirrup-iron,  and  thus 
prevent  a  rider  from  putting  the  foot  too  far  "home." 


DRESS  247 

crown  and  broad  brim  type,  which  makes  the  wearer 
look  like  a  mushroom;  also  beware  of  the  brim  that 
turns  down — called  the  "  latest  thing  out."  A  mod- 
erate-sized crown  and  fairly  closely  turned-up  brim, 
resembling  a  man's  conservative  model,  is  the  one  to 
choose.  The  material  should  never  be  anything  but 
felt,  and  silky  shining  surfaces  should,  of  course,  at 
once  be  rejected.  A  narrow  half-inch  hatband  is  far 
smarter  than  the  broad  band  in  general  use. 

For  spring  or  autumn  wear  a  dark  brown  or  a  pearl- 
gray  bowler — or  as  it  is  quaintly  called  in  England  a 
"white  Billycock  hat,"  is  very  smart.  It  should  be 
of  similar  shape  and  style  as  the  black  bowler,  and  the 
hatband  on  a  gray  bowler  should  never  be  of  any  other 
color  than  gray.  A  black  band  is  permissible  on  a 
gray  topper,  but  looks  extremely  cheap  on  a  bowler. 

The  top  hat  is  the  dress  hat  and  hunting  hat  par 
excellence,  but  in  order  to  be  smart  it  must  be  properly 
shaped.  A  good  English  shape  with  a  medium-sized 
crown,  a  very  slight  "bell"  to  it,  and  a  fairly  narrow 
closely  turned-up  brim,  similar  to  a  man's  topper,  is 
much  smarter  than  those  seen  over  here,  with  a  low 
flat  crown  and  broad  brim,  which  make  the  wearer's 
face  appear  like  the  clapper  under  a  huge  Christmas 
bell,  or  those  cone-shaped  affairs,  which  resemble  a 
cheap  vaudeville  actor's  head-gear. 

Some  people  object  to  wearing  a  top  hat  on  the 
grounds  that  a  bowler  is  more  comfortable,  and  that 
in  our  thick  American  coverts  a  topper  soon  gets 
scratched  up  and  requires  to  be  "done  up  "  after  each 
ride.*  These  minor  disadvantages,  however,  might  be 
overlooked  for  the  sake  of  the  "smartness"  that  a 
top  hat  bestows  upon  its  wearer. 

*  A  topper  stands  rain,  however,  better  than  a  bowler. 


248  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

Before  passing  onto  the  subject  of  other  hats,  it 
would  perhaps  be  well  to  draw  the  reader's  attention 
to  certain  rules  of  etiquette  which  should  govern  the 
wearing  of  a  top  hat. 

1.  Should  never  be  worn  before  noon  when  hacking. 

2.  It  should  never  be  worn  except  with  a  dress  habit 
and  black  boots. 

3.  In  the  hunting  field  it  should  never  be  worn  be- 
fore November  1.  (In  locations  where  the  hunting 
season  opens  very  early,  the  topper  should  only  be 
worn  at  "late"  meets;  in  other  words,  it  should  never 
be  worn  "cubbing.") 

4.  In  this  country  where  top  hats  are  in  the  minority, 
and  their  presence  is  a  trifle  conspicuous,  they  should 
never  be  worn  excepting  when  one  is  mounted  on  a 
high-class  horse  and,  if  hunting,  by  a  rider  who  intends 
to  go  hard  and  straight.  The  sight  of  some  one  wear- 
ing a  topper,  when  riding  a  hired  nag  is  quite  incon- 
gruous, and  only  makes  the  poor  animal  look  the 
"rattier"  for  being  so  dressed-up. 

To  break  these  unwritten  laws  of  the  top  hat  is  to 
dub  yourself  a  greenhorn  in  the  eyes  of  those  who  know. 

For  cub-hunting  either  a  bowler,*  or  a  black  or  gray 
"Squire's"  hat  is  very  smart.  The  "Squire's"  hat  is 
shaped  rather  like  a  topper,  only  it  is  squarer  and  lower 
of  crown  and  is  made  of  a  dull  felt,  similar  to  that  used 
in  a  bowler.  A  good  Squire's  hat  can  only  be  obtained 
in  England. 

*  Generally  speaking,  only  bowlers  and  toppers,  intended  for  hunt- 
ing, are  made  "hard,"  i.  e.,  stiffened,  so  that  they  afford  considerable 
protection  to  the  rider's  head  in  case  of  a  fall.  I  see  no  reason,  how- 
ever, why  all  riding  hats  should  not  be  made  in  the  same  way.  The 
very  slight  difference  in  weight  is  more  than  made  up  by  the  protec- 
tion afforded  the  head  against  tree  limbs  as  well  as  falls,  and  also  by 
the  fact  that  hard  hats  naturally  wear  much  better  than  those  of  or- 
dinary make,  which  become  soft  and  sloppy  if  they  ever  get  wet. 


DRESS  249 

A  gray  topper  with  a  narrow  black  band  is  rather 
smart  for  showing  hacks  at  spring  shows.  It  is  too 
flashy,  however,  to  be  used  other  than  rarely.  In  shape 
it  should  be  identical  to  the  silk  topper,  and  in  color  a 
darker  gray  than  that  of  the  gray  bowler.  The  band 
on  it  should  be  one  and  one-half  inches  wide  and  of 
black  cloth.  This  hat  should  only  be  worn  as  "dress," 
when  the  rider  is  exquisitely  turned  out  and  well 
mounted,  and  it  is  correct  only  on  a  saddle  horse. 
Unfortunately,  in  common  with  many  other  of  our 
smartest  styles,  it  has  been  badly  copied  by  many 
hatters  in  this  country  and  has  been  overdone. 

For  summer  and  country  wear,  an  English  white 
straw  sailor-hat  with  a  fairly  high  crown  and  narrow 
brim  is  very  smart.  As  a  rule,  however,  straw  hats 
are  unfortunately  not  very  becoming  to  the  average 
face,  and  are  in  reality  no  cooler  than  a  gray  bowler, 
which  therefore  does  quite  well  for  summer,  as  well  as 
for  spring  wear.  Panamas  are  floppy,  uncomfortable- 
looking  affairs,  and  so-called  ''continentals"  are  far 
from  smart.  It  goes  without  saying  that  caps  and 
other  weird  shaped  hats  are  tabooed  by  any  woman 
making  any  pretense  to  smartness.  A  good  "som- 
brero," however,  makes  a  nice  hat  for  knocking  about 
the  country.  In  our  hot  American  climate  the  Egyp- 
tian "sola  topee,"  or  the  white  pith  (cork)  helmet, 
worn  by  poloists,  can  also  be  used  with  success.  They 
are  extremely  cool  and  light,  and  if  given  a  coat  of 
white  paint,  they  will,  although  losing  something  of 
their  smartness,  last  longer  and  be  quite  water-proof. 

All  riding  hats  should  be  placed  squarely  and  firmly 
on  the  head;  they  should  not  be  so  small  in  size,  that 
they  perch  on  top  like  "Charlie  Chaplin's,"  nor  yet 
so  large  that  they  resemble  a  candle-snuffer.     The 


250  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

angle  should  always  be  absolutely  straight,  neither 
tilted  forward,  nor  to  the  side,  as  this  gives  one  the 
appearance  of  a  "cheap  sport."  All  women's  riding 
hats  should  have,  firmly  sewn  on  the  inside,  a  broad 
elastic  band  which  is  placed  behind  the  knot  of  hair, 
and  secured  with  hair  pins.  Pins  through  the  crown 
of  a  hat  are  dangerous  and  an  uncalled  for  disfigure- 
ment. 

The  hair  should  be  worn  straight  back  off  the  fore- 
head and  done  up  in  a  snug  braid  or  bun,  but  never, 
excepting  in  the  case  of  a  child,  should  it  be  tied  with 
a  hair-ribbon.  The  hair  may  be  pulled  out  just  a 
little  over  the  ears  to  prevent  one  looking  like  a  skinned 
rabbit,  but  it  should  never  be  worn  puffed  out  or 
fluffed  like  a  chorus  girl  on  the  stage.  A  hair  net, 
made  of  heavy  cording,  woven  like  a  fish-net,  helps 
very  much  in  keeping  the  hair  tidy,  but  it  is  not  easy 
to  obtain  in  this  country. 

Properly  put  on  and  correctly  secured,  a  riding  hat 
should  remain  in  place  under  every  sort  of  circum- 
stance; nothing  short  of  a  hurricane  should  be  able 
to  dislodge  it,  and  even  after  a  fall,  its  position  should 
be  more  or  less  unchanged.  There  is  no  excuse  for 
the  untidy-looking  head-dress  that  one  so  often  sees. 

The  veil  is  one  of  the  many  secrets  in  the  English- 
woman's possession,  which,  perhaps,  in  some  measure 
accounts  for  her  invariable  and  immaculate  smart- 
ness in  the  saddle.  For  some  unknown  reason,  Amer- 
ican women  will  not  adopt  the  veil,  although  it  has 
so  much  to  recommend  it  and  practically  nothing  that 
can  be  said  against  it.  It  does  not  dazzle  the  eyes  or 
obstruct  the  view  as  is  so  commonly  supposed,  and  it 
keeps  the  hair  wonderfully  tidy,  helps  to  secure  the 
hat,  adds  to  the  general  smartness  of  appearance,  and 


DRESS  251 

in  riding  through  our  thick  American  coverts  prevents 
the  twigs  from  scratching  the  face.  Any  one  who 
wishes  to  look  correctly  appointed  cannot  do  better 
than  to  adopt  the  veil.  In  order,  however,  to  give  it 
a  fair  trial,  one  must  not  use  merely  an  ordinary  veil. 
The  riding  veil  is  a  creation,  per  se,*  cut  to  certain 
accurate  measurements,  and  possessing  an  elastic  run 
around  its  edge  which  holds  it  firmly  to  the  hat.  By 
this  means,  it  can  be  adjusted  or  removed  in  an  in- 
stant without  even  the  aid  of  a  mirror,  and  it  requires 
no  pins  to  keep  it  in  place. 

Hat-guards  are  only  worn  when  hunting  or  jump- 
ing, but  all  riding  hats  should  be  provided  with  the 
necessary  hat-guard  ring  in  the  brim,  in  case  it  is  re- 
quired. Out  hunting,  a  hat-guard  is  indispensable,  for 
should  one's  hat  be  swept  off  by  an  overhanging 
branch,  the  rider  can  easily  recover  it,  without  being 
put  to  the  inconvenience  of  dismounting. 

The  best  gloves,  for  general  riding  use  and  for  hunt- 
ing, are  of  reddish  brown  (not  yellow)  doeskin,  with 
plain  stitching  and  only  one  button.  They  should  be 
several  sizes  larger  than  those  usually  worn,  in  order  to 
insure  perfect  freedom  for  the  fingers,  and,  for  the  same 
reason,  a  pliable  soft  skin  should  always  be  chosen.  So- 
called  "  driving  gloves,"  with  ridges  of  leather  running 
parallel  on  the  hand,  are  supposed  to  give  a  good  grip 
on  the  reins,  but  I  think  that  they  are  too  stiff  and 
clumsy  for  riding.  The  correct  way  to  wear  riding 
gloves,  is  to  leave  them  unbuttoned  and  turn  them 
down  over  the  wrists. 

Although  the  reddish-colored  doeskin  gloves  are 
by  far  the  most  serviceable,  and  have  the  most  work- 
manlike appearance,  for  dress  occasions  white  or  buff 

*  Messrs.  Sands,  in  Sloane  Street,  London,  will  send  them  by  mail. 


252  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

colored  real  buck  gloves  are  very  smart.  Real  buck 
is,  however,  very  difficult  to  obtain,  and  if  it  cannot 
be  procured  no  attempt  should  be  made  to  wear  light- 
colored  gloves,  for  imitation  buck  and  chamois  gloves 
are  sloppy-looking  things.  It  goes  without  saying, 
that  gauntlets,  swedes,  or  gloves  in  different  shades 
of  gray  or  yellow,  are  tabooed.  For  winter  wear  fur 
or  fleece-lined  doeskin  gloves  may  be  worn,  with  wrist- 
lets if  necessary. 

Except  for  knocking  about  in  the  country,  a  woman 
should  never  ride,  hunt,  or  show  without  gloves.  It 
is  all  twaddle  to  say  that  they  hamper  the  fingers, 
for  if  made  of  a  soft  skin,  properly  fitted,  one  can  al- 
most play  the  piano  in  them,  and  in  protecting  the 
fingers  they  are  far  more  apt  to  be  an  advantage  than 
a  disadvantage. 

For  regular  hacking  or  hunting,  nothing  is  smarter 
than  a  plain  hunting  stock  of  white  unfigured  linen. 
The  collar  proper  should  be  starched  stiff  but  not 
glazed,  and  the  broad  ends  of  the  stock  should  be  left 
soft.  Most  of  the  " ready-made"  stocks  are  untidy 
affairs,  that  look  like  a  sore-throat  bandage  around 
one's  neck.  A  stiff  stock  may  possibly  feel  a  bit  un- 
comfortable at  first,  but  one  soon  becomes  used  to  it, 
and  then  rejoices  at  the  luxury  of  wearing  something 
that  remains  tidy  and  presentable  under  all  circum- 
stances. 

As  a  change  from  the  white  stock,  a  stiff  standing 
(not  turn-over)  collar  is  permissible  for  hacking  or  for 
showing,  but  it  is  not  correct  for  hunting.  It  is  worn 
with  an  old-fashioned  dotted  foulard  "stock  tie," 
similar  to  those  affected  by  our  grandfathers,  as  seen 
in  old  daguerreotypes.  These  stocks  may  be  either 
simple  little  ties,  which  go  once  completely  around 


DRESS  253 

the  collar  and  tie  in  a  small  soft  bow  (not  a  voluminous 
artist's  bow),  or  else  they  are  of  the  Ascot  variety,  with 
broad  ends.  These,  after  going  completely  around  the 
collar,  tie  in  front  exactly  like  the  white  hunting  stock, 
and  are  puffed  out  and  secured  with  a  plain  pin.  Both 
styles  are  very  smart,  if  properly  put  on  and  correctly 
made,  in  dark  blue,  green,  brown,  or  black  foulards 
with  inconspicuous  polka-dot  patterns,  but  not  in 
loud  colors.  The  tie  should  not  be  so  wide  as  to  cover 
all  the  white  of  the  collar,  and  it  should  be  so  cut  that 
it  is  higher  in  front  than  in  the  back,  so  that  it  does 
not  go  around  the  collar  at  the  same  height  all  the 
way.  Unfortunately,  these  smart  little  stocks  have 
been  so  badly  copied  by  every  one,  that  they  are  now 
rather  common. 

Another  sort  of  tie  to  wear  with  a  plain  stiff  stand- 
ing collar  and  which  is  suitable  when  showing  a  hack, 
is  a  white,  or  black  satin  Ascot. 

For  summer  country  wear,  a  soft  linen  or  silk  turn- 
over collar  may  be  worn  with  a  silk-knitted  four-in- 
hand  tie.  The  collar  should  be  pinned  together  above, 
as  well  as  below  the  tie,  with  small  gold  safety-pins, 
without  which  the  collar  presents  an  untidy  appear- 
ance. 

Jewelery  of  any  kind  should  never  be  worn  when 
riding.  A  plain  gold  safety-pin  should  be  used  to  secure 
stock  ties,  and  is  far  smarter  than  a  pin  of  fancy  de- 
sign. Diamond  horseshoes,  etc.,  bespeak  the  parvenu. 
In  addition  to  the  pin  for  the  stock,  simple  cuff-links, 
and  a  plain  wrist-watch,  are  the  only  accessories  that 
are  necessary. 

If  going  over  to  England,  I  would  advise  having 
one's  garments  and  one's  boots  dressed  with  an  invisible 
and  harmless  water-proofing,  which  renders  them  im- 


254  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

penetrable  to  the  rain.  As  a  general  rule,  it  is  easier 
to  have  habits  so  treated  before  the  cloth  is  made  up, 
but  with  boots  it  can  be  applied  each  week  just  like 
blacking. 

If  one's  clothes  have  not  been  water-proofed,  the 
waterproofs  made  by  Burberry,  England,  will  be 
found  very  serviceable.  Those  with  a  belt,  which 
prevent  the  wind  from  getting  under  them,  are  by 
far  the  best.  A  rubber  apron,  is  the  only  adequate 
protection  for  a  woman's  right  knee,  which  usually 
gets  the  worst  of  a  wetting.  Thin  emergency  water- 
proofs, weighing  only  ten  ounces,  prove  useful,  but  of 
course  do  not  afford  as  much  protection  as  the  heavier 
ones.  White  waterproofs,  although  smart  in  appear- 
ance, soil  very  quickly  and  are,  to  boot,  usually  made 
of  a  poor  quality  of  rubber,  which  cracks. 

White  or  buff  "cord"  gloves  are  indispensable  for 
wet  weather,  for  nothing  is  so  unpleasant  as  a  wet 
doeskin  glove,  with  which  it  is  almost  impossible  to 
hold  the  reins.  Cord  gloves  should  therefore  always 
be  carried  under  the  girths  when  hunting,  in  case  they 
are  needed. 

Considered  merely  as  an  article  of  dress,  and  aside 
from  any  use  which  it  may  be  put  to,  the  proper  kind 
of  whip  for  all  ordinary  hacking,  or  for  show-ring  pur- 
poses, is  a  short  " swagger"  stick  made  of  bamboo, 
twisted  leather,  or  plain  wood.  A  cutting  whip 
(with  a  leather  loop  for  a  point),  should  be  used 
only  for  schooling,  or  racing,  for  inasmuch  as  it  is 
made  of  whalebone  covered  with  catgut,  it  is  very 
severe. 

The  hunting  crop,  like  most  of  our  riding  things,  is 
of  English  origin,  and  when  hunting  over  there  is  an 
indispensable  article  with  which  to  open  the  latches  of 


DRESS  255 

unjumpable  gates.*  Over  here,  where  one  is  more 
apt  to  jump  the  gate  than  to  attempt  to  open  it,  the 
use  of  the  crop  is  confined  for  a  mere  follower  of  the 
hunt:  (1)  To  hold  out  at  arm's  length  with  the  thong 
hanging  down  vertically,  in  order  to  warn  hounds 
away  from  a  horse's  heels;  (2)  to  crackf  in  aiding  the 
turning  of  hounds  (a  practice  best  left  to  those  who 
know  something  about  it);  (3)  to  use  in  saving  the 
pelt  of  the  fox  from  hounds,  should  one  happen  to  be 
alone  with  them  when  they  kill. 

It  will  be  readily  seen  that  the  actual  use  of  the  hunt- 
ing crop  in  this  country  is  far  more  limited  than  in 
England,  and  is  not  a  necessity  over  here,  as  over  there. 
Nevertheless,  I  cannot  conceive  of  a  well-turned-out 
person  going  out  hunting  without  a  crop.  If  for  no 
other  reason,  it  should  be  carried  for  the  sake  of  old 
hunting  tradition,  and,  once  used  to  it,  it  will  be  found 
quite  as  convenient  for  touching  a  horse  as  any  other 
sort  of  whip,  and  no  more  cumbersome  to  handle. 

A  woman  should  never  make  the  mistake  of  select- 
ing a  dainty  ladies'  crop,  but  should  pick  one  that  is 
made  somewhat  as  follows:  The  handle  should  be  of 
bone,  roughened  at  the  end,  and  with  a  metal  stud. 
(This  is  to  prevent  the  crop  slipping  when  pushed 
against  a  gate.)  The  main  body  of  the  crop,  which 
should  be  about  nineteen  or  twenty  inches  long,  must 
be  either  of  plain  malacca  or  of  heavy  whalebone, 

*  In  opening  a  gate  the  thong  should  be  wrapped  around  the  hand 
several  times,  so  that  should  it  be  jerked  out  of  the  hand  it  may  be 
easily  recovered. 

t  In  cracking  a  thong  the  rider  should  make  the  cuts  upward  and 
downward  on  a  vertical  plane,  parallel  to  the  horse's  side,  and  a  little 
away  from  him  so  as  not  to  hit  him.  The  art  of  cracking  the  thong, 
like  learning  to  catch  a  four-in-hand  thong,  should  be  practised  on 
foot  and  never  attempted  on  horseback  unless  one  is  sure  not  to  hit 
him.    All  hunters  should  be  accustomed  to  the  use  of  the  thong. 


256  HACKS  AND  HUNTERS 

covered  one  half  with  catgut  and  one  half  with  leather. 
One  or  two  silver  bands  may  be  placed  on  the  stick. 
The  leather  keeper,  at  the  end  of  the  stick,  should  be 
of  the  same  color  as  the  thong  and  long  enough  to 
permit  of  the  thong  being  brought  around,  so  that  it 
will  lie  flat  against  the  stick. 

The  thong  should  be  three  feet  ten  inches  long,  and 
finished  with  a  red,  blue,  brown,  or  green ' '  point . ' '  Some 
people  prefer  a  white  pipe-clayed  thong,  which  is  un- 
doubtedly very  smart,  but  as  it  soils  very  quickly  and 
the  pipe-claying  comes  off  all  over  a  woman's  habit, 
I  do  not  think  it  is  as  practical  as  the  brown  thong. 
A  crop  without  a  thong  should  never  be  used  under 
any  circumstances.  The  empty  keeper  flopping  in  the 
air  is  extremely  foolish-looking. 

The  hunting  crop,  in  common  with  the  swagger- 
stick  or  any  other  sort  of  whip,  should  be  carried  in 
the  right  hand  with  the  handle  pointed  downward,  and 
close  to  one's  side,  to  prevent  it  catching  in  branches, 
etc.  It  is  frequently  stated  that  the  correct  way  to 
hold  the  thong  is  to  loop  it  once  around  the  hand, 
but  a  far  better  way  is  simply  to  lay  it  flat  against  the 
hand  and  allow  it  to  hang  straight  down.  The  former 
method  is  so  clumsy  I  do  not  wonder  that  people  who 
think  they  are  obliged  to  carry  it  in  that  way  prefer 
to  leave  it  home  altogether  rather  than  be  encum- 
bered with  such  a  handful. 

For  use  in  hacking  about  the  country,  a  short  kennel 
crop,  which  has  a  thong  but  no  handle,  is  very  con- 
venient to  whip  passing  dogs  off  one's  horse's  heels, 
etc.  It  should,  however,  never  take  the  place  of  the 
regulation  hunting  crop. 

For  summer  use  a  "fly-swisher,"  made  of  bamboo 
with  a  tassel  of  white  or  black  horsehair,  is  very  useful 
in  keeping  the  flies  off. 


DRESS  257 

The  uses  of  the  spur  are  discussed  elsewhere,  suffice 
it  to  say  that,  considered  simply  as  an  article  of  dress, 
the  proper  spur  for  a  woman  is  a  blunt  polo  spur  with 
a  short  or  long  shank,  according  to  taste  and  require- 
ments. A  heavy  man's  spur  should  be  selected  and 
not  the  delicate  little  affair  that  is  usually  offered  a 
woman  and  looks  as  if  it  would  bend  in  the  breeze. 
The  regulation  woman's  spur,  which  has  a  rowel  and 
a  guard  to  prevent  its  catching  in  the  riding-habit, 
should  never  be  used,  not  only  because  a  rowelled 
spur  is  in  any  case  quite  unnecessary,  but  also  because 
the  patented  guard  nearly  always  gets  out  of  order 
and  the  whole  thing  looks  far  from  smart. 

There  is  nothing  that  so  dresses  up  a  boot  as  a  well- 
polished  spur,  providing  that  it  is  properly  put  on  and 
not  allowed  to  "drip,"  or  sag,  at  the  heel.  To  prevent 
this  the  spur  should  be  fitted  to  the  boot,  and  the  straps 
made  at  that  length  which  will  permit  of  the  spur  being 
held  at  right  angles,  and  as  high  up  on  the  heel  as  the 
seam  which  joins  the  leg  of  the  boot  to  the  foot.  Spurs 
worn  lower  than  this  are  not  smart,  and  although  a 
small  spur  block,  attached  to  the  boot  to  prevent  the 
spur  sagging,  is  preferable  to  a  dripping  spur,  never- 
theless it  is  not  nearly  so  smart  as  a  spur  so  well  fitted 
that  it  remains  in  place  by  itself. 


REFERENCE   LIST  OF   APPOINTMENTS 

Outdoor  shows,  park  and  general  riding  in  the  morning  : 
Black  or  gray  bowler  (hat-guard  only  on  hunters). 
White  hunting  stock,  or  collar  and  stock  tie. 
Black  or  gray  habit  with  skirt-coat. 
Black  patent-leather  butcher  boots  (calf  on  hunters)  and 

garters.     (Boots  should  be  well  "boned.") 
Spur. 

Tan  doeskin  gloves. 
Swagger-stick. 

Summer  shows  or  general  riding  in  the  country: 

Gray  bowler  or  sailor  (hat-guard  only  on  hunters). 

White  hunting  stock  or  collar  and  stock  tie. 

Gray  habit,  or  light  coat  and  skirt  of  different  material. 

Tan  field  boots  (and  garters). 

Spur. 

Tan  doeskin  gloves. 

Swagger-stick. 

Indoor  shows,  afternoon  or  evening,  and  afternoon 
park  wear: 

Top  hat  (hat-guard  only  on  hunters).     Veil  optional. 
White  hunting  stock. 

Black  Melton  habit  with  skirt-coat,  or  Pytchley  and  vest. 
Black  patent-leather  boots  (calf  on  a  hunter)  and  gar- 
ters. 
Spur. 

Tan  doeskin  or  white  buckskin  gloves. 
Swagger-stick  (hunting  crop  on  a  hunter). 
Small  boutonniere  of  real  flowers. 

Full  appointments  for  saddle  appointment  classes: 

(Rider's  attire  same  as  above  described  for  afternoon  and 

evening  wear) : 
Tack  on  horse. 

bridle 

Plain  double  bridle  with  Weymouth  bit  or  Pelham. 
Reins  and  headstall  sewn  in.  not  buckled. 

258 


REFERENCE   LIST  259 

Plain  stitched  nose-band.  Cavasson  nose-band  incor- 
rect on  a  hack. 

Brow-band  or  front  of  silk  braided  ribbon. 

No  martingale  permitted. 

If  desired  a  French  bridle  and  bit  with  single  rein  may 
be  used. 

SADDLE 

Good  make,  preferably  with  narrow  off  flap,  but  not 

cut  so  as  to  show  girth  buckles. 
Balance  strap  optional. 
Leather,  and  not  buckskin,  pommels  and  seat.    Leather 

or  linen  lining.     No  pockets  or  monograms  on  off 

flap. 
No  numnahs  or  pommel  pads.     Leather  girths. 
The  leather  of  saddle  and  bridle  should  match  in  shade 

and  be  of  a  dark  color. 

HORSE 

Color.    Bay,  chestnut,  sorrel,  or  brown  preferred. 

Gray,  black,  and  roan  only  permissible. 

Dun,  skewbald,  piebald  not  permissible. 

Excessively  flashy  markings  count  against  a  horse. 

Mane,  neatly  braided,  without  color,  or  hogged  accord- 
ing to  type  of  horse. 

Tail,  pulled  at  dock,  and  switched  or  banged  at  the 
hocks. 

Horse  undipped,  or,  if  clipped,  with  only  a  saddle-mark 
left  undipped. 

Fetlocks,  nose,  and  ears  neatly  trimmed. 

For  cub-hunting: 
Black  bowler  or  " Squire's"  hat  with  hat-guard. 
White  hunting  stock. 
Black  Melton  habit  with  skirt-coat. 
Black  calf  butcher  boots  and  garters. 
Spur. 

Tan  doeskin  gloves. 
Hunting-crop  with  brown  thong. 

Hunt  livery: 

(Correct  after  formal  opening  of  season  and  for  Corinthian 
classes  in  shows) : 


260  HACKS   AND   HUNTERS 

Top  hat  with  hat-guard  to  match  velvet  collar.  Veil  op- 
tional. (Hunt  collar  should  never  be  worn  with  a 
bowler.) 

White  hunting  stock. 

Black  Melton  habit  with  skirt-coat  (or  Pytchley),  with 
distinctive  hunt  buttons  and  velvet  hunt  collar.* 

Black  calf  butcher  boots  and  garters. 

Spur. 

Tan  doeskin  or  white  buckskin  gloves. 

Hunting-crop  with  brown  or  white   pipe-clayed   thong. 

Combination  oblong  hunting-case  should  be  carried  on 
off  rear  side  of  saddle,  and  white  or  buff  cord  gloves 
under  off  girths. 

Full  appointments  for  ladies'  hunt  team: 

For  member's  team. 

All  three  ladies  attired  as  above,  and  exactly  alike  even 
as  to  the  shape  of  hat,  tying  of  stock,  length  of 
thong,  etc.,  etc. 
Tack  on  horses. 

Bridles  all  alike,  double  or  single,  with  sewn-in  reins 
and  headstalls.  French  clip  not  desirable.  Plain 
Cavasson  nose-bands  and  plain,  not  colored, 
fronts. 
Saddles,  all  alike,  of  some  good  make,  preferably 
with  pigskin,  and  not  buckskin,  seat  and  pommels. 
Leather  or  linen  lined,  with  leather  girths. 
Martingales  and  breastplates  optional,  but  the  latter 
generally  advisable  on  a  ladies'  team.  If  used, 
martingales  and  breastplates  should  be  made 
to  fit  each  horse.  Martingale  rings  should  be 
of  proper  size,  so  that  leather  stops  are  unneces- 
sary. 
Leather  combination  flask  and  sandwich-case  (oblong 
not  oval)  carried  on  off  rear  of  saddles.  White 
or  buff  cord  storm  gloves  under  off  girths,  with 
tips    just    protruding    beyond    the    saddle-flap. 

*  Scarlet  is  never  worn  by  women,  although  I  believe  Miss  Somer- 
ville  of  the  West  Carbery,  in  Ireland,  who  hunts  her  own  hounds, 
wears  it. 


REFERENCE  LIST  261 

Wire-cutters  optional,  but  not  considered  advisa- 
ble on  a  ladies'  team. 

Horses. 

All  alike  as  possible  in  shape,  style,  type,  and  color, 
and  all  suitable  for  women's  use.  If  an  odd 
colored  horse  is  present  he  should  go  in  the  cen- 
tre. 

Manes,  tails,  and  clipping  all  alike.  Manes  neatly 
braided,  without  color,  or  hogged.  Tails  pulled 
at  butt  and  banged  or  switched.  If  clipped  the 
saddle-mark  and  legs  should  be  left  undipped. 

For  team  of  lady  M.  F.  H.  and  lady  whips,  or  lady 

HUNTSMAN   AND  WHIPS: 

All  details  same  as  for  member's  team,  with  the  follow- 
ing exceptions. 

Black  velvet  helmets  instead  of  toppers. 

Lady  acting  as  M.  F.  H.  rides  in  centre  and  carries 
horn-case. 

Ladies  acting  as  whips  carry  couples  for  the  hounds 
and  an  extra  stirrup  leather  in  addition  to  the 
combination  sandwich-case. 

If  a  lady  rides  in  a  member's  team  with  two  gentle- 
men, she  should  be  dressed  exactly  as  in  the 
ladies'  team,  but  her  hat  should,  of  course,  be 
exactly  like  that  worn  by  the  men,  and  her  coat 
should  be  of  the  same  cut  and  style  as  theirs, 
although,  of  course,  not  scarlet.  She  should  carry 
the  combination  sandwich  and  flask  case,  but 
the  men  should  carry  separate  flask  and  sand- 
wich cases;  the  former  on  the  near  forward  side 
of  the  saddle,  and  the  latter  on  the  off  rear. 

The  men  should  be  dressed  as  if  they  were  in  a  man's 
team,  with  white  leather  breeches,  calf  boots  with 
pink,  flesh,  or  brown  tops,  and  white  garters,* 
spurs,  crops,  etc.  Their  coats  should  be  of  black 
frieze  or  of  scarlet. 

*  Before  1880  knee  ties  of  white  leather  ribbon,  tied  just  below  the 
fourth  button  of  the  breeches,  were  worn  instead  of  garters.  It  will 
be  observed  that  the  gentlemen  in  the  illustration  facing  page  132,  were 
wearing  these  as  late  as  1893. 


262  HACKS   AND   HUNTERS 

Ladies'  cross-saddle  appointments: 

As  stated  elsewhere  I  do  not  advocate  cross-saddle 
riding  for  women,  but  as  there  seem  so  many  doubts  con- 
cerning the  manner  in  which  a  woman  astride  should 
dress,  a  little  advice  on  the  subject  may  not  come  amiss. 

For  a  woman  to  be  turned  out  exactly  like  a  man,  is,  in 
the  nature  of  things,  impossible.  There  is  a  wheel  within 
a  wheel  in  appointments,  and  certain  articles  of  clothing 
call  for  others,  so  that  the  best  that  a  woman  can  do  is 
to  compromise  on  those  most  suitable  for  her  particular  use. 

For  example,  a  top  hat  when  worn  by  a  man  on  a  hack 
calls  for  long  blue  military  trousers  and  box-spurs;  when 
worn  on  a  hunter  it  necessitates  boots  with  flesh,  pink,  or 
brown  tops,  and  these,  in  turn,  demand  white  leather  or 
cord  breeches.* 

It  is  quite  obvious  that  a  woman  cannot  wear  military 
trousers,  and,  for  that  matter,  neither  does  she  look  very 
well  in  white  breeches.  In  the  following  list  of  apparel  it 
is  endeavored  to  get  around  these  difficulties,  and  suggest 
appointments  that  are  both  correct  in  themselves  and  yet 
suitable  for  a  woman's  use. 

For  general  use,  park  wear,  or  for  showing  a  hack: 

Black  or  gray  bowler. 

White  hunting  stock,  or  collar  and  tie. 

Single-breasted  skirt-coat. 

Brown  cord  breeches,  buttoned  on  the  inside  of  the 
shin.  (Coat  and  breeches  should  preferably  not  be 
of  the  same  color  and  material,  as  this  looks  like 
a  groom's  livery.) 

Jack  boots  and  garters. 

Spurs. 

Tan  doeskin  gloves. 

Swagger-stick. 

For  riding  or  showing  a  hunter: 
Black  bowler  and  hat-guard. 
White  hunting  stock. 

*  Brown  breeches  and  boots  with  patent-leather  tops  are  occasionally 
worn  with  a  "topper"  in  Ireland,  but  it  is  not  considered  correct. 


REFERENCE  LIST  263 

Single-breasted  skirt-coat. 

Brown  cord  breeches. 

Black  boots  with  patent-leather  tops,  and  black  garters. 

Spurs. 

Tan  doeskin  gloves. 

Crop  with  thong. 

For  country  or  summer  wear: 
Gray  bowler  or  man's  white  sailor. 
Turn-over  collar  and  four-in-hand  tie. 
Single-breasted  skirt-coat  of  tan  gabardine  or  linen. 
Shepherd's  plaid,  gabardine,  or  khaki  breeches. 
Tan  field  boots,  leggins,  or  box-cloth  gaiters  and  shoes. 
Spurs. 

Tan  doeskin  gloves. 
Swagger-stick. 

For  a  ladies'  cross-saddle  hunt  team: 

Correct  appointments  for  a  team  of  women  astride  are, 
owning  to  the  afore-mentioned  difficulty  about  white 
breeches,  "top"  boots,  and  top  hat,  far  from  easy  to  deter- 
mine. As  a  well-known  hunting  judge  once  said:  "There 
are  no  appointments  for  a  woman's  team  astride !" 

As  a  bowler  is  under  no  circumstances  correct  for  a 
hunt  team,  and  a  top  hat  necessitates  wearing  white 
breeches,  in  the  following  list  it  will  be  noted  that  the 
"Squire's"  hat  has  been  suggested  as  the  proper  com- 
promise. 

Black  "Squire's"  hat  with  hat-guard. 

Skirt-coat  (Pytchley  looks  vulgar  on  a  woman  astride). 

Brown  cord  breeches,  buttoned  or  laced  on  the  inside. 

Calf  boots  with  patent-leather  tops  and  garters. 

Spurs. 

Tan  doeskin  or  white  buckskin  gloves. 

Hunting-crop  with  brown  thong. 

Cord  gloves  under  off  girths. 

Separate  flask  and  sandwich-case  as  in  a  man's  team. 

If  a  woman  insists  on  wearing  a  topper,  she  should  then 
wear  white  leathers  or  cords,  and  boots  with  flesh,  pink,  or 
brown  tops,  with  white  garters. 


264  HACKS   AND   HUNTERS 

If  she  rides  with  two  men  in  a  team  she  is  then,  of  course, 
obliged  to  wear  the  topper  and  leathers  and  top  boots,  as  is 
also  the  case  were  she  in  a  team  acting  as  M.  F.  H.,  under 
which  circumstances,  the  topper  is  supplanted  by  a  helmet. 

Before  closing  it  might  be  well  to  add  a  few  words  to  the 
effect  that  children  should  be  dressed  as  much  like  their 
elders  on  horseback  as  is  consistent  with  their  age. 

Tiny  bowlers  are  preferable  to  silly-looking  jockey  caps. 
A  jacket,  turn-over  collar  and  tie,  well-made  breeches,  leg- 
gins  or  box-cloth  gaiters  and  shoes,  complete  a  smart  out- 
fit.   An  older  child  may  wear  boots. 

When  a  girl  gets  old  enough  to  ride  side-saddle  she  should 
then  be  fitted  with  a  Melton  mixture,  or  very  dark  blue 
jacket,  well-cut  skirt,  and  boots.  A  stiff  Eton  collar  is  more 
youthful  than  a  regular  stock.  She  should  wear  a  bowler 
and  have  her  hair  neatly  tied  back. 

Tan  doeskin  gloves  and  a  swagger-stick  are  smart,  but 
spurs  should  be  reserved  for  the  more  experienced. 


Webster  Family  Library  of  Veterinary  Medicine 

Cummings  School  c       irinary  Medicine  at 

Tufts  Univ 

200  We  oad 

North  Grafton,  MA  01536 


